Pokemon Sun and Moon: Rising Shadows
by marcus00721
Summary: The sequel to XYZ: The Shadow Project. The bright peaceful days of Alola are threatened by an old, yet new darkness. Will Ash and his friends be able to save Alola from the shadows that lurk within?
1. Chapter 1: Alolan Winds

DISCLAIMER: Read Pokemon XYZ, The Shadow Project, as it is this series is the sequel to that story!

The Alola League came to a climatic conclusion. Champion Ash Ketchum defeated Professor Kukui and Tapu Koko in a clash that would change Alola tradition from that point forward! Now it was a peaceful few days. The Alola season was winding down and many people had to think about what it was they were going to do next. Ash was one of these people. He had been spending the last few days contemplating what it was he wanted to do. The first thing was somehow breaking the news to the others that he was returning to Kanto soon. His time in Alola was coming to a close and he knew it. "I wonder what I'm gonna do…" The trainer wondered aloud. Pikachu, always perched on his shoulder, glanced at him worriedly. "Don't worry! I'll figure it out!"

"Pika!" Pikachu smiled and nodded in agreement. Right now, they had a long day at the Pokémon School. Ash took the usual path back home, taking in the Alola scenery he'd grown accustomed to. He was sure the others were busy with their own plans.

"Bzzt!" That sound came from Rotom! The pokemon made its home inside Ash's pokedex and floated around him. "I hear there's a marathon on TV after school! We have to watch it!"

It was a calm day that was for certain. The days he'd gotten used to. Little did he know that the peaceful days on Alola would be in jeopardy soon enough. There was a strange breeze in the Alolan winds. Ash had been around long enough to notice that this breeze was a little different than what he was used to. "Huh…" Whatever could that mean? It'd have to wait. His stomach was rumbling! He was starving!

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"_I'm not going to be a burden to anyone anymore!" _One of the last words uttered by an old friend, Kasumi; the girl who was plagued by the Cipher organization. How long had it been since that day in Kalos? Ash could still remember it clearly. They were all pushed into a corner, but Kasumi's heart opened at the last possible second and she saved them all. Ash awoke in the dead of night, glancing around with a melancholy expression.

"That dream again…" The tired Ash yawned. It wasn't the first time he had that dream. There were times where he wondered if he could do things differently, but he was also reminded that Kasumi was the only one who could do anything about that situation. But it did make his mind wander to the friends he hadn't seen in such a long time. "I wonder how they're doing…"

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Melemele Island was one of the more popular tourist spots in Alola. It brought in plenty of people over the last few days, although some were kind of stuck for a few reasons. Even during the night, the city of Hau'oli still had its own kind of busy rush. That rush included the shopping trip of a certain rich pink haired Heiress from Kanto! Takeba Vermillion, 5th place in the Regional Tournament casually strolled about the city streets. Her outfit of choice for this island region was a tank top and shorts, coupled with heels just for the sake of it. "All right you two! We've still got some more shopping to do!"

"Listen, can we please take a break…?" This complaint came from Grace. 3rd place in the regional tournament and former assistant of the Cipher organization. Not by her own free will. It was all to save the friend that risked it all for them. Unfortunately for her, she was stuck carrying some heavy bags. "All of this stuff is yours!"

"Hmmm…" Takeba turned to face Grace, tilting her head. "You know, you're right. It's unfair that you're carrying all my stuff. So the next store we swing by, I'll buy you all the stuff you can carry then!"

"NO!" Grace shook her head. "That's not what I meant…!" She then turned to the male next to her. "Do something about this! She's your girlfriend and she's running us ragged!"

Marcus groaned. The runner up of the regional tournament! He was just as tired as she was. "Do you know how many times I've tried to stop this back in Kanto? I can't stop her! So I've just accepted that this is a part of our life now."

"Why did you give up so quickly…what spell does she have over you!?" Grace questioned.

Takeba smiled mischievously, turning around to pat Marcus on the head. "The spell of love, duh~. But all things aside, I really do appreciate you both joining me on this vacation! I wish we would've gotten here a little sooner though! I would've loved to see Ash fight in person!"

"Is it really a vacation when we're being driven into the ground…" Grace mumbled. When the topic shifted to Ash, she did not in agreement. "Yeah, I'm sad we missed that. To think he'd become Alola's first champion…"

"And we still can't figure out where he is!" Marcus grunted in frustration. "I've been doing a lot of training and really wanted that runback!"

"Maybe if you're lucky, we'll run into him." Takeba poked her tongue out. "But you can't very well battle in that outfit, can you?"

"…You said you liked this outfit…" Marcus blinked.

"….Well, I do! But there's always room for improvement! Come on, the next shop is this way!" Takeba just continued to lead them around. They were starting to learn very quickly why not many people accompanied the heiress on vacation.

Grace rolled her eyes and just followed behind Takeba. As they wandered around the city late and night, her thoughts started to wander. _"Kasumi would love this place…"_

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Route 2. It was a ways off from the city of Hau'oli. As much as the Alola weather was killing the Sinnoh native, she unfortunately had a job to do, while also unaware of her companions presence on the island. She was here for a completely different reason and she was, well, kind of in agony. Out of pure stubbornness, Elizabeth kept her usual sinnoh style. This was regrettable since Alola was far hotter than Sinnoh would ever be! "Not here either, I see…"

It was then that a hiker passed the woman by; staring curiously at the clothes she decided to wear to this tropical reason. "Uh, excuse me. Aren't you feeling a little hot in those clothes?"

"Oh absolutely." Elizabeth responded. "This region feels like I jumped into the sun. And before you ask, it doesn't matter what I wear, I'd still be feeling like I'm on fire!" She kinda snapped with that comment unintentionally. She'd been receiving that question for the last few days and it was getting on her nerves.

Sweat drop. The hiker clearly wasn't going to be able to do anything about this so he just shrugged his shoulders and tossed her a spare bottle of water. "Here. I'd feel bad just leaving you out here like this, so take it. I hope you warm up to Alola soon!" And with that, he was off!

Elizabeth did accept that bottle of water and chugged it down. It was ice cold, which she desperately needed. "Arecus…no offense to this region, but it's like I stepped into a hellhole…" Rolling her eyes, she kept looking. "Now…they should be on this island at the very least. If not, I'm going to be upset I have to spend any more time in that blazing sun…" That's when her Zoroark popped of out its pokeball, giving her a look. "…Don't give me that look! You have fur and are somehow cool no matter where we go! It's not fair!"

During her little rant, Zoroark noticed something in the skies above. A strange hole opened up in the sky a few kilometers away on Route 1. Something dropped from the hole into the thicket of the trees. "…!" Zoroark then pointed in that direction.

"Huh?" Elizabeth just barely noticed it. The hole in the sky vanished as quickly as it appeared. "What in the world? Is that it?" Was this what she was looking for? Without thinking much about it, she and Zoroark hurried to the estimated location of the object that fell from the sky. A few minutes of searching yielded no results. "…Did we just see things? I swear something fell. And what was that hole in the sky? I've never seen anything like it…"

Zoroark searched for a few minutes, ultimately shaking its head. It found nothing as well and grunted.

"Agh. How annoying." Sighing, the bluenette simply turned around. "I think that's enough searching for tonight. If I don't get back to our AC in that hotel room, I'm going to die. C'mon…"

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Aether Paradise. One could call this a sleepless night for the President of the foundation: Lusamine herself. It was just one of those nights. It was rather unfortunate she couldn't get any sleep and it would probably show in the morning. Still, there was nothing wrong with checking a few things. It was a silent night and as the hours passed, she was starting to drift off at her desk. The only thing that stopped her from doing so was the small beep on her monitor. She jolted away enough just to catch the reading. "What? An Ultra Wormhole?" It was no surprise that they were still popping in around Alola every so often. Truthfully, she expected some Ultra Beast to pop out, but that wasn't the case. The reading was otherworldly, that was for sure, but not that of an Ultra Beast. "…?" What was this reading? There was an abundance of Z-power coming from it! "I'll have to check this out…" She was drifting off. "Tomorrow….." And she was out cold…

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The Alolan sun rose once again! Another fine morning to greet the day! Ash and his party of Pokémon were already out and about on the beach, preforming some daily stretches before heading to the Pokémon School to meet up with everyone! "All right! Let's get going!"

"Ash!" That voice belong to his friend Lana. She was up for some early fishing, waving from the ocean on her ride Lapras. "Good morning."

"Hey, Lana!" Ash greeted his friend with a smile. "What are you doing so early? I thought you'd be at the school by now."

"I was finishing up a horde of Wailord." Lana said with a straight face.

"WAIT, REALLY!?" Ash's eyes widened. This was the same girl who managed to fish a Kyorge for real, so he wouldn't put it past her!

"Just kidding." Lana stuck her tongue out playfully. This caused Ash to comically wither away into dust. The blue haired girl motioned for Lapras to return to her home on its own. "But since I'm here, I'll walk with you."

"All right!" Ash said. The two of them began a usual trek down the path to the Pokémon School. When they passed by the forest, that's when a surprise was waiting for them. Tapu Koko was in front of them. It was staring more at Ash than Lana, but it clearly had something it wanted to show them. "Tapu Koko…?"

"What's it doing…?" Lana questioned, not that she had any idea.

"It looks like it's trying to tell us something, bzzt." Rotom suggested.

"…" Tapu Koko didn't say anything. Instead it rushed into the forest!

Ash had experienced this a few too many times. He knew that the island deity was trying to tell them something! "Come on, Lana!"

"Okay…!" Lana didn't question it! She suddenly found herself running alongside Ash as they followed Tapu Koko. They were going to be late, but when your island guardian told you to follow it, you followed. It was a few minute dash, but they eventually came to a clearing. Tapu Koko circled around a pile of leaves before flying off into the distance. Whatever it wanted to show them was right within that pile.

"Bzzt. It's gone." Rotom flew up a little past the trees to see where Tapu Koko went. It was long gone.

"The leaves?" Ash blinked.

Pikachu hopped off Ash's shoulder, curiously sniffing at the leaves. That's when it picked up a weird smell. "Pika! Pika!" The mouse gestured to the leaves with a concerned expression.

"Is there something in there?" Lana started to remove the leaves. That was when an arm fell out and she almost cried out from surprise. "H-Huh!? Is this a person!?"

Strange. But Ash, Pikachu, and Lana started to remove the leaves. Luckily a gust of wind did most of the work for them! The pile of leaves scattered, leaving the tiny group with a surprising sight. A girl was passed out in the leaves; she wore a red hat, her hair was black and it was difficult to discern the color of her eyes due to her being unconscious. She wore a yellow shirt with a floral pattern and green shorts. Why she was here, or why Tapu Koko brought them here was a mystery. "Hey…is that…a Z-Ring?" Ash's eyes wandered to the black Z-Rign on the girl's wrist. It was just like his own! Which was…odd, since the four Tapus personally upgraded his Z-Ring on Poni Island!

There were numerous questions floating in the air, but the most prominent one was…

Who was this girl?

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Next Time: The Girl Who Fell From the Sky.


	2. Chapter 2: The Girl From The Sky

Takeba sprang up from bed, stretching and yawning. Shopping both tired and invigorated her. This woman was extremely overbearing on a vacation. She had money to spare and did not mind buying everything she could get her hands on! The Vermillion family owned a small beach house in Hau'oli city. Who needed a hotel when they had such a big space to call their own! "Come on you two! Our vacation in Alola is just beginning!" When Takeba went to awaken her significant other and friend, she found…a predictable sight. Marcus was passed out, but his spirit was trying to leave his body from how exhausted he was! Takeba's green eyes rolled in annoyance and she had to force his spirit back into his body. "Wake uuuuuuuuuup!" She whined.

It took a few moments but the revival attempt did work. Marcus coughed and sat up. "I-I'm up! I'm up!"

"Waaah!" Takeba was startled. So much that the klutz just kinda somehow fell forward on top of him! Now they were in a compromising position so early in the morning!

As for Grace, she trudged forward, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes with a loud yawn. "I'm up…" She rounded the corner, only to see Marcus and Takeba in an odd position. The shock seemed to wake her right up and she just blinked a few times. "Should I…come back later?"

"No…! We're fine!" Takeba hastily stood up, her cheeks matching the same shade of pink as her hair. Only because Grace walked in on them. "A-Anyway, I've got exciting plans for us today!"

"Please, no more shopping. My arms are still falling off…" Grace whined.

"Please, sweetie…" Marcus too was tired.

Of course Takeba predicted this and clasped her hands together. "We're not doing anything today. Today you two are free to do whatever you want! As in we're heading to the beach to relax." The airhead was being a bit overbearing, but at least she had good intentions today. "A little sun never hurt anyone."

"I feel like a little sun would murder a certain someone…" Grace mumbled. "That being said, I could use some fresh Alolan air! This region is beautiful."

"Same." Marcus sat up. "I'm down for some relaxation in the sun."

"And after that, there's something I wanna try tomorrow!" Takeba clasped her hands together. "I was reading up on Alolan culture and…"

"You read?" Grace spoke on instinct.

Oof. Takeba had a sweat drop on her forehead while trying to recover from the demoralizing blow. "A-Anyway! I was reading on Alolan culture and they have this thing called the Island Challenge! I really want to try that whole Z-move stuff!"

"…Are you sure you wouldn't trip?" Marcus teased.

"Come on! It's like 9AM!" The rich girl pouted. Why were they bullying her so early in the morning! She didn't ask for this. "I'm going to the beach!" And so she stormed off, preparing to change and grab a few necessary items.

Okay, Marcus had his fun. Laughing, he patted Grace on the shoulder. "All right…I should probably make sure she doesn't forget anything. See you at the beach!" And so he was off as well.

"Yeah…" Grace nodded. When Marcus left she sighed once again, turning to look out the nearest window. "Ah…I hate feeling like this. We're on vacation and I can't stop feeling sad. This sucks…"

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Ash, Pikachu, Lana, and Rotom were at a loss. They were just on their way to the Pokémon School when Tapu Koko led them a little bit into the nearby forest. Awaiting them was an unconscious girl with a Z-Ring similar to Ash's own. Right now they were trying to figure out what to do! "Bzzt. I don't remember seeing this girl around the island." Rotom remarked, slowly circling around the unconscious girl.

"I don't remember seeing her around…" Lana was looking the mysterious girl over. "She doesn't look hurt. Maybe the leaves cushioned her fall?"

"But what are we supposed to do with her? Bzzt." Rotom questioned.

Ash was racking his brain for an idea. "I think Tapu Koko wants us to look after her. I can't think of another reason why it would go out of its way to show us this." That was the best thing Ash could come up with.

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded in agreement. He then tilted his head, trying to figure out how they were going to move her. Pikachu did try to roll the girl over, but she was heavier than he expected. "Pika…"

"We have to be careful." Lana warned. "She may not look injured, but we can't exactly see her back or any internal injuries."

As they were trying to figure out a way to move the girl, they noticed a Charizard flying overhead. They only knew one person with a Charizard that made this route. It was Kiawe! Maybe he was the person they needed in a time like this. "Heeeey! Kiaweeee!" Ash cupped his hands around his mouth, calling out to their friend.

Luckily for them, Kiawe was able to hear Ash from down below. Curiously, he reined Charizard and told it to land nearby. "Hey guys, what's going on?" Absolutely no idea what was going on. He glanced at the unconscious girl. "New friend? Taking a nap?" And then his eyes wandered to the Z-Ring and he began to freak out, comical lightning striking in the background to match his shocked expression. "A Z-RING!?" Of course a Z-ring wasn't uncommon in Alola, but this girl's was absolutely anomaly. Especially because of the Alola League. This girl absolutely would've been seen with a Z-Ring like that.

"We found her here like this thanks to Tapo Koko. But we're not really sure how we should move her." Ash explained.

"Heh." Kiawe had a confident smirk on his lips. "Leave that to me. When you lift someone, you have to do it carefully." As he said this he crouched down, slowly turning the girl over and that's when they saw it! A massive burn mark on her back. "…!"

"Whoa…!" Ash took a step back.

"She is hurt…!" Lana gasped.

"Injury! Injury!" Rotom floated around, snapping pictures of the girl's burned back. "These burn marks look like that from of Flamethrower!" Rotom said, comparing her burns to that of which it had seen before. "But there are no signs of fire in the area, bzzt!"

"If that's the case…where did she come from?" Ash tilted his head. It was a wild guess, but not entirely out of the park. "Unless she fell from the sky?"

"The way she's positioned in the leaves makes that possible…" Kiawe rubbed the back of his head.

"We can discuss that later!" Lana took initiative. "First thing's first, we have to get her treatment. We don't know how long she's been like this, but we should get her somewhere safe first."

"She's right!" Ash nodded. "Kiawe, can you go ahead and tell the others we're heading to the Pokémon Center? Nurse Joy might be able to help."

"Yeah!" Kiawe agreed to this plan and hopped on Charizard's back. The fire type flew off, understanding the situation at hand.

Ash unhooked a pokeball and tossed it into the air. "Incineroar, come out!" And so came the wrestling feline, glancing around as it tried to discern the current situation. "Can you carry her for us? We're heading to the Pokémon center."

"Incin!" It didn't understand what was going on, but it seemed urgent. Incineroar complied, gently lifting the girl up into its arm and followed alongside Ash and Lana as they hurried to the Pokémon Center!

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Once again, Elizabeth's search began anew. She was melting under the Alolan sun. Luckily the trees in the forest did provide a little bit of shade, but it wasn't helping her case. "They should be on Melemele Island, they said. I haven't seen anything yet!" She said before chugging down a bottle of ice cold water. It helped a little bit, but it could only help for so long. "This would be a lot easier if I had some help." She was vaguely aware of the Alola League. All she knew was that Ash won, but had no idea where on earth he'd even be, if he was even on this island! As far as she knew, she was on her own. "Why does this place have to be the polar opposite of Sinnoh, I like the cold…"

As Elizabeth whined to herself about the heat, a berry rolled in front of her. She stopped as a small Stufful mewled, rushing out of the bushes nearby to grab the berry. As it munched, it turned and stared at Elizabeth. The small red panda was absolutely adorable. "…"

"…Aw! What's this little thing?" Finally, something decent about Alola! Elizabeth pulled out her Pokedex to get a read on it.

"_Stufful, the Flailing Pokémon. Despite it's appearance, when it gets angry and flails about, its arms and legs could knock a pro wrestler sprawling. It hates to be touched in any way and will surge into a frenzy, snapping trees in its wake."_

Sweat drop. Elizabeth closed her Pokedex after that description. "…Why does it feel like everything on this island wants to kill you?" Shaking her head, she decided to go for it anyway. A pokeball was pulled out and she threw it forward. "Go, Pokeball!" The pokeball soared towards Stufful, who playfully hit it back at her. It struck her in the forehead and she fell over with a red mark on her head. "Ugh. I pulled a Takeba…!" Sitting up, she glared at the Stufful who seemed to be enjoying itself! "All right you little…"

_Thud. Thud._

The sound of footsteps caught the bluenette's attention. Rounding a tree, a Bewear appeared! The Bewear tilted her head while staring at Elizabeth. "Kuuuuu." And then it waved its hands with a friendly smile.

"…What is that?!" Once again, Liz's Pokedex came out.

"_Bewear: the Strong Arm Pokémon. This pokemon has a habit of hugging its companions. Many Trainers have left this world after their spines were squashed by its hug. It waves its hand wildly in intimidation and warning. Life is over for anyone who doesn't run away as fast as possible."_

Multiple beads of sweat started to fall from her face. "Are you serious!? What's with this region!?" And it clicked that Bewear was waving at her a few seconds ago….and now it was rushing towards her. "AHHH!" Screaming, she was bolting it as fast as possible. When she looked back, she saw Bewear unintentionally knocking down multiple trees with its arms. This wasn't real. This couldn't be real! "Zoroark! We're getting out of here!" Calling forth Zoroark, the illusionist used Night Daze on the ground. This created a thick plume of smoke that served as cover.

Bewear and Stufful came to a halt, both looking around. "Kuu…" Bewear then sighed dejectedly. She thought she could make a new friend! Oh well. Picking up her child Stufful, she started to walk off once more.

As for Elizabeth, she had been hiding behind a tree, panting heavily. She just narrowly escaped a fatal hug. "This region sucks. Why is everything out to kill me!?"

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Jessie, James, and Meowth were out in about in Hau'oli city. Their Bewear themed food truck constantly got customers. They made a killing during the Alola League, but there was nothing wrong with making some more money! Plus, the people enjoyed their malasada donuts. Business was booming as usual and they were easily able to keep up. "Just a little more and I'll finally be able to buy that dress I saw! Hahaha!"

"You can't blow our all funds again!" James chided his partner. Last time she did that they had no money for a week!

"Yeah! Think about us too!" Meowth added.

"Wobbefett!" Said Jessie's Pokémon.

"Excuse me! Can I have a Malasada!" A feminine voice asked.

"Oh, of course." Jessie turned around, only to be face to face with Takeba. They stared each other dead in the face for a few seconds. Jessie was absolutely stunned to see this pink haired twerp here in Alola, but it didn't look like Takeba recognized Jessie due to her disguise. This stare down lasted a few seconds before Jessie panicked. "….O-One moment…!" The pitch in her voice rose and she frantically turned around, bringing the other two in for a huddle. "The pink haired twerp…!"

"What?!" James peeked over Jessie's shoulder, immediately recoiling when his eyes met Takeba's. Why was she staring at them!? "Ah…! What's she doing in Alola!?"

"I don't think she recognizes us…!" Meowth tried to ease the others. "Just serve her and make it quick!"

The trio nodded and stood up. Luckily they had some malasadas on standby. Jessie handed Takeba a single one and received the proper payment. "Here you are, ma'am!"

"Thank you!" Takeba smiled. She then took a bite out and her eye gleamed. "This is delicious! I'm gonna need a few more for my boyfriend and his friend!"

Jessie's face paled. Takeba wasn't leaving, and Jessie honestly hoped that the friends she was talking about weren't other twerps! "I-I'm so glad you enjoy them!"

"Hm…give me about…a bag of these. Maybe two." And the pinkette slammed down a wad of cash on the counter. She was throwing money away at everything that caught her interest, but she could afford it.

James, Jessie, and Meowth's eyes gleamed at the amount of cash she was giving them. Even if she was a twerp, she was paying them a lot. "As you wish! Coming right up!" All three of them said!

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Ash and Lana were able to get the mystery girl to the Pokémon Center. It was the first place to think of. Nurse Joy returned to them and gave them a reassuring smile. "That girl is going to be all right. She suffered some burn damage, but it won't be permanent. There were some small bruises along her back as well, presumably from her fall. She'll be fine."

"Thanks goodness." Lana could breathe a sigh of relief.

"She should wake up soon." Nurse Joy pointed to the room the girl was resting in. "She's down the hall, that way."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy!" Ash grinned as Nurse Joy went on with her usual business.

The doors to the Pokémon Center opened; Kiawe, Lillie, Mallow, and Sophocles all rushed in. "We heard what happened! Is that girl all right?" Mallow asked.

"Yeah, she's fine now." Ash nodded. "Lana and I were about to go see her, did you guys want to come with?"

"Yes!" Lillie said. She spoke for everyone who appeared, and so they all went into the room where the girl was sleeping. When they got inside, they all stared at her curiously. "…I don't think I've seen her around Alola? But it feels like she's been here."

"I was going to say the same thing…" Mallow was looking the girl over. "The shirt totally screams 'Alola!' and I kinda like it."

"You said she fell from the sky?" Sophocles asked Ash and Lana.

"Well…" Ash rubbed the back of his head. "It was a guess at first. But Nurse Joy said she fell, so that has to be it!"

Lillie took a closer look at the girl's Z-Ring. "And this Z-Ring. It's very odd. It looks like yours, Ash."

Ash held up his Z-Ring. "Yeah, that's the weird part. I wonder what's going on here." Suddenly, Ash's Z-Ring started to flash. "Huh?" And in turn, the girl's Z-Ring responded with a flash of its own!

"Are they reacting to each other!?" Sophocles questioned. There was a bright light that filled the room and the group cried out in surprise. Nothing bad happened, but it just caught them all off guard.

"Is everyone okay?" Mallow looked around and then down at the Shaymin in her arms. Everything seemed to be all right.

"I'm fine." Lillie had her eyes closed.

"Nnnn…." The girl started to stir. Everyone went silent as she awakened! Hazel eyes opened and naturally she was very confused about the situation. Everything was a blur and she saw vaguely familiar people in front of her. "Where…am I…?"

"You're in a Pokémon Center." Ash told her.

"…?" The girl blinked, staring at Ash. She then looked all the others slowly until…her eyes landed on Lillie. Tilting her head, a strange look of familiarity came across her face, staring at Lillie a lot longer than she should have.

It was making Lillie feel a little uncomfortable. "U-Uhm…can I help you…?"

The girl continued to stare. There was only one word that left her lips. "Lillie?"

And that single word brought more confusion than anyone was prepared for…

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Next Time: Amnesia.


	3. Chapter 3: Amnesia

There was an awkward silence in the Pokémon Center. The mysterious girl who fell from the sky was unrecognizable to anyone else, yet here she was, speaking to Lillie with such familiarity. Naturally they were confused, but Lillie was the most taken aback by all this. Her green eyes widened and she just stared at the hazel eyed girl in confusion. "H-Huh?"

"Lille, do you know her?" Mallow asked, looking back and forth between the girl and Lillie.

"I don't…" Lille started.

But that's when the girl sprang up, ignoring her injury as she closed in on Lillie. "Oh, Lillie! I'm so glad you're okay!" Her hands went on Lillie's shoulders and Lillie's expression turned to under bewilderment as swirls appeared in her eyes.

"Vul…" Lille's Vulpix, Snowy, just mewled at the situation.

"Uh…" What were they supposed to do about this? "Are you sure you should be moving like that?" Kiawe broke the tension. It was getting a little difficult to watch poor Lillie being subjected to whatever this was.

"Yeah, you're hurt, you know?" Lana said.

"You should really let Lillie go, too…" Ash added.

"Huh?" The girl blinked a few times. She didn't realize she was shaking Lillie and pulled back. "Sorry, Lillie. I'm just so glad to see that you're all right. I got worried…"

Lillie recovered from the girl's shaking, shaking her head to regain her senses. "Uhm…I'm sorry to say this, but I don't know what you're talking about…" She hated to break the news to this girl, but she was absolutely clueless.

"Huh?" The girl was clearly confused. The mention of her injury then caused her to remember she was actually hurt and she recoiled hard. "Aaaah! Owowowowow!"

Sweat drop. They already knew she was mostly okay, but watching this was a little strange. "So, what happened to you?" Sophocles asked the most important question. It was the one everyone wanted to know!

The girl sat back down on the bed, glancing at Lillie once more. "Lillie and I were running and then…and then…." She trailed off. Her eyes widened in horror as everything before and after that specific memory were completely blank. She didn't remember. "…I…I can't seem to remember what happened. I…I just remember Lillie getting hurt…" Again, she looked at Lillie.

"But I'm fine…?" Lillie did not understand what was going on at all. Neither did the others, but the girl did seem oddly adamant about insisting it was her.

"I'm sure you'll remember!" Ash was keeping an optimistic outlook on the situation. "Oh, that's right. I'm Ash from Pallet Town. What's your name?"

"My name?" The girl crossed her arms. She tried to remember her name, Remember…she…couldn't remember. Who was she? "I…I can't remember my name. I don't know my name…!" Uh oh. That was a problem. The others glanced at each other with worried expressions. "Lillie, what's my name!?"

Why was she asking her!? Lillie felt awful about everything she was saying, but it couldn't be helped. "I-I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't know who you are. I'm sorry!" She repeated. She could not apologize enough; that girl was very clearly depending on her for an answer, but she was asking the wrong person. Being the bearer of bad news left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Somehow, the girl refused to believe this. It didn't make any sense to her. After all, she very clearly knew who she was talking to. At least that's what she believed. "But…"

"Is this amnesia…?" Mallow asked the group, her voice dropping to a quiet whisper.

"It must be." Sophocles confirmed. "But I don't understand how she remembers Lillie so clearly when Lillie doesn't know her." The young scientist was having a tough time figuring this one out.

"Oh, wait!" Lana hit upon something. "We had your bag, too! Maybe something to identify you is in there?" The water trainer pointed to the slightly charred bag sitting in a chair nearby.

Without wasting a second, the girl reached for the bag and started to rummage through it frantically. Various items were thrown out of the bag, but nothing of substance. Not until the girl pulled out a trainer's card. "Oh, is this it…?!" And to her luck…it was burned. It was her ID, but the part that had her name was burned, leaving only the letter M and an image. This caused her expression to fall considerably. "…..I can't remember." A single letter was no help in this case.

This was rough. Everyone took a quick glance at one another. They really wouldn't feel right leaving this girl like this. Ash was the first person to speak once again, giving a friendly smile along with Pikachu. "Don't worry; we'll help you find your memories!" Even though he was the one who said it, everyone else seemed to be thinking the same thing.  
"Pikachu!" Pikachu held a hand up and smiled. It then hopped from Ash's shoulder and onto the girl's lap, trying to make her feel better. "Pika!"

The girl seemed very confused. "But…I don't know any of you people, except Lillie." That was deeply rooted into her memory, even more so than her own name. As one would expect, it just felt really awkward for Lillie. "It seems like a lot of trouble for someone you just met…"

"It's no problem at all!" Mallow presented a friendly smile of her own. "We wouldn't feel right leaving you alone like this. I'm Mallow; it's nice to meet you! This is Shaymin!" The girl said, holding up the mythical pokemon in her arms. Shaymin let out a small cry and waved its little paw at her.

"I'm Lana!" Lana introduced herself, placing her hands behind her back.

"I'm Sophocles! And this is Togedemaru!" He proudly held up his partner pokemon, who let out a happy cry as an introduction. "We'll do our best to help you out!"

"I'm Kiawe!" Kiawe held a confident grin. "And you don't have to worry about a thing! Leave your lost memories to us!"

And last but not least. "And I already said this, but I'm Ash! That's my partner Pikachu. We're from Pallet Town back in Kanto. We'll help you out!"

"…" Lillie felt a little awkward about this whole thing. Still, she tried her best. "A-And I'm Lillie. I'm not sure how you know me, but I'll still do my best to help you as well!"

The girl did manage a tiny smile at all the positive energy. It was really nice of them to offer to help her. "I don't know what to say but thank you. I hope I don't forget your names." And at that moment, she noticed something. Her eyes wandered to the Z-rings everyone wore. Vastly different in their own right…and yet again, her gaze couldn't help but go to Lillie. Something was different about her…

.

.

The tropical beach was the perfect place to be. Alola's summer weather all year round brought many tourists. Grace was relaxing in the shade under an umbrella, trying to take this vacation seriously and try to relax. There was just a lot on her mind as of late. "You know, the beach is actually kind of relaxing…"

Marcus was sitting in a chair, munching on one of the malasada donuts Takeba bought. The ones covered in honey were absolutely delicious. "See, I'm glad you're finally unwinding. You needed this more than anyone. Oh, did you hear? Apparently last night, something fell from the sky on the route nearby."

"From the sky?" Grace opened an eye. "Seems pretty vague. Does anyone actually know what it was?"

"Nope." Marcus shook his head. "It also seems like no one could find anything. But a tree was knocked over! So it really makes you wonder if anything fell or not." Shrugging, he went back to the malasada donut. This thing was so good. Never would he guess that the geniuses behind it were Team Rocket, but he didn't need to know that.

"Uh-huh…" Finding the little story a little ridiculous, the trainer sat up and pointed to Takeba, who was having a fun time in the ocean along with her Blastoise. "Hey are you sure we should be leaving her alone? Not as a jab to her independence or anything…but there are some pretty dangerous pokemon in this region. Especially in the water!"

"Oh come on, this region can't be _that_ dangerous!" Marcus waved a hand dismissively.

"No, seriously!" Grace groaned. "I think a Pokémon called Pyukumuku is around here."

"A what." Marcus stared at Grace like she just spoke nonsense.

Rolling her eyes, the brunette pulled out her Pokedex, displaying an image of the Pokémon in question. "This thing! It's entry reads that it uses its internal organs to hit things."

"…That's disgusting. But it also sounds cool." Marcus stood up. "Oi, Takeba…! Watch your footing, okay?"

Takeba rolled her eyes at the warning. "C'mon, I'm not that clumsy! I've been fine!" The rich girl waved her hand dismissively, in a similar manner Marcus did just a few seconds ago. Grace realized this and could not believe how alike their mannerisms were becoming. "Besides, what's the worst that could happen?"

"Those are famous last words!" Marcus shouted worriedly. In fact, he was better off just walking over to make sure she did trip.

Too late. Takeba wasn't watching where she was going and she stepped on something sticky. "Ew-!" It was a Pyukumuku – one that didn't take too kindly to being stepped on either! Accident or not, the sea cucumber naturally retaliated! It spat out its internal organs, which took the shape of a fist, and slammed right into Takeba's gut! "HURK…!" Her green eyes widened from the shock and she crashed into Blastoise, the two of them toppling over with swirls in their eyes.

"Ah…!" Marcus gasped and hurried over to Takeba.

"I knew this would happen…" Sighing, Grace stood up and followed suit. "Are you two okay!?"

"Uhhhhh…" Takeba was alive. But she was definitely out cold. Blastoise too, as it landed on its head after Takeba collided with it.

Marcus and Grace looked at each other before sighing. "Guess we're doing this now…come on…" Kneeling down, he lifted the pinkette into his arms bridal style. "I'm really sorry! She's clumsy!" He was apologizing to the Pyukumuku.

"To the Pokémon Center with you." Grace grabbed Blastoise's Pokeball and returned it. Looks like they had one trip today after all.

.

.

So far, Alola had not been kind to Elizabeth. Between the hot sun and nearly getting killed by the fluffiest bear she'd ever seen…this region was not her friend. Still she was tasked with an important mission, which was the only thing keeping her tied down to Alola at moment. For not, she was taking a break, wandering through Hau'oli city. "Maybe I'm going about this the wrong way. This region looks nice enough, if only it wasn't so hot…"

"Hold it!" A voice called out, causing Elizabeth to freeze. "Right there. Stay like that. That exasperated expression is exactly what my muse was looking for." Who else but Mina? The painter was looking over Elizabeth – she found the perfect muse.

"Uh…" Elizbeth was staring at Mina. _"Oh no. She's cute." _Was the first thing that came to mind. So that was precisely why she stayed exactly how she was. "Hi there. I'm dying from the sun. Nice to meet you."

"Hi, dying from the sun. I'm Mina. That's my partner Ribombee." Mina gestured to the small insect floating around her before she started to paint. It seems like she took Elizabeth's introduction a little too literal.

"N-No, that's not…" Sweat drop. Mina did seem like she was a little out of it. "But can you hurry, this position is a little uncomfortable. And it's hot."

"You should drop your layers." Mina said absentmindedly. "But that's what drew me to you. Your style caught my eye…it's a stark contrast to the Alolan style. It's captivating in its own sense and I had to capture it on canvas. I hope you don't mind."

It was a little hard to say anything to that. Elizabeth felt a little flattered! Maybe it was worth slowly burning to death under the hot Alolan sun if she caught Mina's attention. "Okay, but you have to show me when you finish."

"Of course." Mina replied, once again absentmindedly. She barely paying attention and focusing on her canvas. It only took a few moments for her to finish and she flipped the painting around. "Here."

Elizabeth was taken aback by how good the painting was! "Wow, this is incredible."

Mina smiled at the compliment. "Thank you. Oh, and thank you for being my muse. I feel like I should repay you. Oh! I got it. Ribombee, give her a Pollen Puff."

"A what." Elizabeth stared at the Ribombee as it made a yellow ball of pollen in front of her. She accepted it, but wasn't sure what she was supposed to do with it. "Uh…"

"Eat it." Mina saw the confusion on Elizabeth's face and decided to clear the air.

"Huh?!" Elizabeth stared. Well, what was the worst that could happen to her in Alola? So she took a bite and…. "…This is delicious." Mina may have seemed out of it, but she knew what she was talking about. Of course such a happy moment couldn't last long as there was some sort of commotion happening a little further down the road. "Oh great, what's going on…"

.

.

"First things first!" Mallow said. "We have to decide on a temporary name for her!"

"…That's true. If we can't figure out her name, it'll be hard to talk to her." Kiawe nodded in agreement. "If her name starts with an M, then I say we go with Melissa!"

"No." The girl shook her head, shooting that idea down immediately. It felt a little weird having people try and name her. The blunt response caused Kiawe to go quiet and remain there with a shocked expression. "Next."

"It feels like we're trying to nickname a Pokémon." Lana said. Thinking of a temporary name was not the easiest thing in the world.

"Mizuki…?" Lillie suggested. "I'm just going off of a name I saw in a book once."

"Mizuki? I kinda like it." Ash said. Ultimately it wasn't his choice though. "What about you?"

"Mizuki…? Hm…" The girl thought it over for a second. It was better than being nameless. "I guess that's fine. Mizuki it is, for now."

"And now we have a name for her." It was a step in the right direction as far as Sophocles was concerned. "So the next step is…figuring out what you _do_ remember, Mizuki."

What a question indeed. "Uhm. Well…aside from me running away with Lillie…uhm…" Mizuki started rummaging through her bag. Her memory was severely fragmented and thinking about it too much made her head hurt. "My head hurts when I think about it. But I think I was a Pokémon Trainer…" She said this, but couldn't find Pokeballs in her bag! This only made her panic again. "But I can't find my Pokémon either?!"

Just what happened to her!? "Don't worry; we'll help you find them, too!" Kiawe said. Keeping Mizuki calm was important!

"Maybe…I think…" Mizuki shook her head. It was no use. So she tried to figure out what else she knew. "We were running…running from someone." She couldn't find anything important in her bag, so she dug in her short pockets. The first thing she felt was a small object. Pulling it out, it was an odd key. "Huh? What's this?"

"It looks like a key of some sort…" Lillie stared at the key. It looked vaguely familiar to her, but she wasn't sure. "Is that…?"

The longer Mizuki stared at the key, the more her head hurt. "Ugh." She put it away. "Looking at it makes my head hurt. I'm forgetting something really important, but I just can't remember." This was so irritating.

"You don't have to remember all at once." Ash said, arms crossed as he gave a few nods. "One step at a time." Their conversation would've continued, but there was some noise outside the Pokémon Center. It seems there was a bit of a commotion outside. "Huh? What's going on?"

The doors to the Pokémon Center opened. Those who entered were not one anyone expected, but still caused a nuisance nonetheless. Alola's infamous gang was here to cause trouble for everyone yet again…

.

.

Next Time: Team Skull.


	4. Chapter 4: Team Skull

A dark skinned male casually walked through the alleyways of Hau'oli City, his hands in his short pockets. Alongside him was a Darmanitan from the Unova region. As he made a turn, he passed by a few Team Skull grunts just itching to get some action in! So when they spotted someone who was clearly a trainer walking by. "Hey you!" One of the grunts exclaimed. "That Darmanitan looks strong. Hand it over."

The male stopped in his tracks, shaking his head with a slight smile. Scott, the psychic from Unova, let out a small laugh. "Ah, right on time." Was all he had to say. His clairvoyance had improved since he was last in Kalos. "You want my Darmanitan?"

"Yeah! We'll even battle you for it!" Another grunt said confidently.

"Well, if that's how you feel." Scott then tossed a Great Ball into the air, the flush of light revealing…another Darmanitan. But this one was vastly different from its Unovan counterpart. This Darmanitan was an ice type! "If you think you can defeat me, by all means. But just so you know, I do have some more important things to deal with than Team Skull."

.

.

"What's going on…?" Mizuki stared as there was some sort of commotion happening outside her room.

"I think we have some uninvited guests." Mallow pouted. Just when they thought Team Skull was done being an annoyance after the League, here they were again, causing trouble. "You should stay here. We'll see what they want."

"I will not." Mizuki replied firmly. Her assertive tone caught the others off guard. "I'm going with you, even if it's not serious. Because in case you haven't noticed, I still don't have _any_ idea where I am…!" Fair point, too.

"…She's right. We should at least let her outside." Lana said. "But we can think about that later." They couldn't object to Mizuki's request. So Lillie was the one to help Mizuki stand up and they all hurried outside the Center.

Surprise surprise. It was Team Skull; but for this Alola Gang, it was the three Team Skull grunts they were so used to seeing; Tupp, Zipp, and Rapp. The two males and female trio were all too excited to cause some trouble! "Yo! You thought you'd seen the last of us, didn't you!?" Said Tupp, the leader of the trio. His arms were crossed as his deduction was correct; cause enough trouble and Ash and his friends would show up! The prefect chance to enact some payback for past defeats!

"You guys again?" Sophocles groaned. They really did think they saw the last of then.

"Don't you have anything better to do? We're kinda busy right now!" Kiawe shouted.

Mizuki tilted her head at the three grunts standing before them. "Who are these guys?"

"That's Team Skull." Ash explained. "They like to cause trouble for people and pokemon alike all around Alola."

"Team…Skull…? Alola…" That seemed to tug at a very faint memory in the corner of Mizuki's head. "But aren't they harmless…?"

"We've been training real hard with Guzma!" Zipp said excitedly. "We've gotten strong enough to beat you!"

"So prepare for a beatdown!" Rapp exclaimed. The three Team Skull goons then posed, leaving an awkward silence that filled the air.

Mizuki glanced around. Clearly there was some history she wasn't aware of here. "Can someone tell me what's going on…?"

"These three bug us all the time." Lillie said, keeping her gaze on the trio of Skull Grunts before them. "Ash beat their boss, Guzma, in the Pokémon League. We haven't seen or heard from Team Skull since, but I guess they're still around…"

"So what I'm hearing is that the people who always lose to you guys think they can beat the person that beat their boss?" Mizuki summed it up nicely. Even then it still didn't make sense to her! "Still…this seems…weird…ugh." And once again, her head started to hurt.

"Got a new friend? Hah! She can watch as we pound you guys to the ground!" Tupp scoffed while tossing a few pokeballs into the air. All three of them released Salandits (males). "My Salandits have been working hard! They'll evolve soon and then you'll really see!" …It seems that no one still had the heart to tell him that male Salandits couldn't evolve.

"This time we'll be the ones to send you packing!" Rapp tossed a pokeball forward, bringing out his trusty Garbodor.

"And then Guzma will be super impressed with us!" Zipp tossed three pokeballs into the air, three Zubats coming out of them. They were serious about this! Their training with Guzma had them feeling on a high today.

Unfortunately Ash and his friends were being left with very little choice. They had more important matters to deal with, like helping Mizuki, but they didn't have a say in the matter here. "All right Pikachu, you ready?"

"Pika!" Pikachu hopped from Ash's shoulders, red cheeks sparking with high voltage lightning.

"Turtonator, let's go!" Kiawe tossed a Pokeball forward, calling forth the blast turtle pokemon. It let out a small roar as it prepared for battle. "Ash and I will handle this." It was almost like old times when Ash first arrived on Alola. How time flies…

.

.

On their way to the Pokémon Center, Marcus and Grace happened to encounter a few more Team Skull grunts. Naturally they didn't have any idea who these guys were, and it didn't help that they were basically blocking the road. "…Who the heck are these clowns?" Grace asked, stepping forward.

"It's Team Skull!" A native said. "They're causing trouble again…"

"Team Skull?" Marcus lifted a brow. "That sounds so lame. But we're kind of in a hurry! OI!" Marcus was still holding a KO'ed Takeba in his arms. "Mind moving aside!? We have to get to the Pokémon Center. It's down the road, isn't it?"

The one to respond was a blonde Team Skull grunt. While the usual mask did cover her face, her eyes were visible; red and green; a heterochromatic pair. "Yo! What's with all the yellin'? We're not letting anyone through."

"Eh?" Marcus blinked. She sounded familiar. Nah, it was his imagination. "We got injured! Step aside!"

"…." Grace went wide eyed. Now, this wouldn't be the first time she'd hallucinated something like this, but she swore that this person was... "You! What's your name!?" She asked suddenly.

"Grace…" Marcus turned to his friend immediately. This wasn't the first time she'd done this, ever since that day…

"Eh?" The grunt looked at Grace like she was crazy. "The heck's that got to do with you? The only way I'm movin' is if I lose a battle!" "This sounds incredibly annoying and generic." Rolling his eyes, he went to grab a Pokeball….only to remember that his arms were full. "…Grace, can you handle this one?"

"Fine." Grace tossed a pokeball up, calling out her Salamance. "Salamance, let's make this quick."

"Hah!" The grunt scoffed. "Toxapex, let's rock!" The girl then threw out a pokeball, calling out a Toxapex! "We'll make short work of you!"

"What the heck is that thing!?" Marcus sighed. Why was this region full of weird pokemon.

"Hope you don't have a Corsola on you! This baby eats those for breakfast by breaking them apart!" The grunt was smirking under the scarf around her mouth.

Grace gasped. "T-That's horrible! Corsola are cute! I can't let this thing prosper now!" She didn't even have a Corsola, but hearing that the poor things were preyed upon by this monster sparked her justice!

.

.

Elizabeth had just finished taking care of the Team Skull grunts causing trouble with Zoroark. It wasn't as difficult as it was annoying. A few buckets of water had been knocked over in the process, but there were still a few around. "Geez. What a drag."

Mina had been painting the whole thing. She didn't think she needed to lend a hand since Elizabeth had the situation pretty much under control. "Perfect…perfect. Can you scoot a little more to the left…?"

"Were you painting this whole time…!?" Elizabeth turned to Mina. Did she scoot to the right as asked? Yes.

"Yeah. It looked like you had it all under control, so…" Mina trailed off.

"Well…" Ugh. Artist.

"Man, she's too strong…" A grunt whined.

"Buzz already!" Elizabeth huffed. She was still dying under the Alolan sun. But that would be the least of her worries. "Wait, Zoroark, look out!" Zoroark ended up having to dodge a Dragon Pulse that exploded against the ground! It would've been a pretty bad hit if it connected. "Who is it now?!"

Plumeria had her arms crossed, staring at the grunts that had been defeated. Her Salazzle crawled next to her. "So, you were the one who thrashed my little idiots…"

"Ah, it's Big Sis!" The beaten grunts were glad to see her.

"Big…Sis…" Elizabeth stared at Plumeria a lot longer than she should have. Oh no, she was attractive too. She glanced between the preoccupied Mina, and Plumeria. Maybe Alola wasn't so bad. "Hey, they bothered me first!"

"But I can't stand when someone brings harm to them." Plumera's lips curled up into a malicious grin. Clearly Elizabeth was strong, so this would be a good chance to show Alola that they weren't free from Team Skull; far from it. "Salazzle, Dragon Claw!" The feminine lizard proceeded to lunge forward, rearing its claw back to strike Zoroark.

Guess they were doing this now! "Zoroark, Shadow Claw!" Zoroark sprang forward, darkness shrouding its claw. It clashed with Salazzle's Dragon Claw, the two entering a deadlock. It was a stalemate in terms of power, neither side willing to back down.

This was perfect for Plumeria. "Sand Attack!" Using its free tail, Salazzle swiped it across the ground, kicking up sand that got directly into Zoroark's eyes! This caused it to recoil and weaken its stance, allowing Dragon Claw to overpower it and send it flying backwards.

"Hey, that's cheap!" Elizabeth growled. "Zoroark, are you okay?!"

"Gh…" Zoroark groaned. Sand was in its eyes and it couldn't see anything! This was irritating the illusionist! Elizabeth had to be its eyes now.

"Sludge Wave!" Plumeria commanded. Salazzle placed its hands on the ground, unleashing a wave of liquid poison towards the blinded Zoroark!

"Jump up!" Elizabeth said. Zoroark followed without question, leaping into the air above the Sludge Wave. "Now, Night Daze!" Pointing its hands forward, Zoroark released a blast of darkness. The signature move was fast, striking Salazzle directly and sent it skidding back across the ground.

Not bad. But not enough. "Dragon Pulse!" Salazzle opened its mouth, unleashing another Dragon Pulse that knocked Zoroark out of the sky!

"Gah!" This was bad. Zoroark was still blinded. Elizabeth scanned the area until she saw those buckets of water. "Turn around!" She commanded while grabbing a nearby bucket, flinging the water into Zoroark's face. That did the trick as Zoroark's sight was restored. "There it is!"

Of course Plumeria wasn't just going to let Elizabeth get away with that for free. "Dragon Claw!" While Zoroark's sight was being restored, Salazzle rapidly approached, preparing to strike Zoroark while its back was turned! It was a direct hit, and Zoroark fell backwards, KO'ed! "Well, maybe I was wrong about you."

Again with the cheap tricks, but Plumeria wasn't the only one who had a trick up her sleeve! So while it looked Zoroark was KO'ed, it was quite the opposite. It wasn't a master of illusions for nothing! The fake Zoroark disappeared! Zoroark crafted the illusion that it had been KO'ed to take Plumeria off guard, only to reappear to Salazzle's left. "Shadow Claw!"

"What!?" Plumeria was taken aback. Shadow Claw hit Salazzle directly, causing it to tumble backwards. That was a nasty hit. She had to respect that kind of foul play, though. This battle was just getting interesting! "Dragon Pulse!"

"Focus Blast!"

Zoroark released a sphere of energy, while Salazzle fired off a multicolored beam of energy that took the shape of a dragon. The two attacks collided and exploded against one another. All seemed fine for those watching except Mina. The explosion knocked several of her sketchbooks into the air and her eyes widened. "No…!" With speeds that would make even a superhuman jealous, she jumped between the two battlers, leaping into the air to catch two sketchbooks in her hands, and the last one in her mouth. The crazy fact is that she stuck the landing, but she did look extremely awkward doing it. "Th was closh." She mumbled with the sketchbook in her mouth.

"…" The battle came to a halt. All Elizabeth and Plumeria could do was just stare at Mina. What in the world did they just witness?

.

.

"Salamance, Dragon Rush!" Grace exclaimed. Salamance cloaked itself in burning blue energy and dove towards Toxapex at full speed.

"Baneful Bunker!" The blonde grunt exclaimed. Toxapex hid within its spines as Salamance slammed into it!

"Baneful what?" Marcus asked.

When Salamance pulled back, it grimaced as its face turned a little purple. It had been poisoned. This naturally shocked Grace. "Huh!? How?"

"Heh. Not so smart are you? Baneful Bunker poisons anyone who makes contact with Toxapex!" There was clearly a cocky smirk under her scarf. "And with its Merciless ability, you'll go down in no time! Venoshock!" From its multiple legs, Toxapex fired off numerous poisonous beams at Salamance. Venoshock already dealt increased damage to a poisoned foe; stacked onto its Merciless ability and the damage it could deal was astronomical.

"Watch out!" Grace said. Despite being poison, Salamance could still nimbly fly in the air. But it couldn't dodge forever and was struck by a beam of poison, knocking it out of the sky with severe damage! "Salamance!" The dragon felt that one for sure, growling lowly as it attempted to stand once more.

"…" Marcus remained silent.

"Ngh…" Takeba was slowly regaining consciousness. "W-What's happening…where am I…where are the malasada donuts…"

"That thing won't last much longer. Time to finish it! Pin Missile!" Toxapex fired off dozens and dozens of needles from its legs, all of them flying towards Salamance to finish it off.

Grace was calm. She hadn't battled any Alolan pokemon, but these new factors and experiences only tested the sharpness of her mind. "Fire Blast." Salamance reared its head back, unleashing a gigantic blast of flame from its mouth. This easily overpowered the Pin Missile and struck Toxapex. "Now, Iron Tail!" Salamance flew into the air, diving down to whip its tail at Toxapex!

"Baneful Bunker!" The grunt said. Just as before, Toxapex hid behind its legs, waiting to block Salamance's attack. But to her surprise, Salamance's tail was aimed at the ground! The raw power caused the ground to break apart, sending Toxapex into the air, exposing its underside! "Huh!?"

"Did you really think I'd fall for the same trick twice!? Zen Headbutt!" Psychic energy swirled around Salamance's head and it rammed into Toxapex, sending it crashing to the ground, defeated in a single blow! Salamance landed and roared out victoriously.

"Ah…!" The grunt gasped at her defeat. This was not the outcome she was expecting. Bitterly, she returned Toxapex and stared at Grace vehemently. "Tch. You…you'll get yours!"

"What an original line." Grace rolled her eyes. But as the grunt started to retreat, she wanted to call out to them again. But Salamance's wellbeing had her attention first and foremost. "Ah, Salamance! Come on, we'll get you some treatment." She returned Salamance, now making a beeline to the center, which was just down the road.

"Don't just leave me behind!" Marcus exclaimed, hurrying after his friend with a semi-conscious Takeba in his arms.

.

.

"Salandit, use Flame Burst!" Tupp commanded all three of his Salandits to attack. The three lizards spewed forth potent blasts of flame that would explode violently on contact! Pikachu and Turtonator were the targets.

"Zubat, use Poison Sting!" Rapp said. Her Zubats complied, all of them firing off small, poisonous darts alongside the Flame Bursts.

"Garbodor, Gunk Shot!" Zipp was the last one to fire an attack. Garbodor unleashed a gigantic blast of sludge towards the two opposing Pokémon. They had the number so surely they would win this time!

"Pikachu, use Electro Web!" Pikachu complied to Ash's command. Pikachu jumped into the air, a sphere of electricity forming on its tail. Swinging its tail forward, this sphere turned into a widespread net that served as a shield, blocking every attack that came their way with no trouble. Electro Web's utility had numerous applications when it was in the hands of someone like Ash.

"Dragon Tail!" With Ash's assist, Kiawe and Turtonator were free to act with no hindrances. Turtonator bent over, spinning its tail around before lunging its large body forward, slamming its tail against Garbodor. The impact caused the trash pokemon to fall over into two Zubats and unintentionally crushed them.

"Hey, watch it!" Rapp shouted at Zipp.

Tupp was undeterred. This would be their day. "Scratch!" Two Salandits jumped ahead, targeting Turtonator with their sharp claws.

"Shell Trap!" Turtonator turned around, exposing its shell to its attackers. As soon as they made contact with the spikes on its back…the spikes shone brightly for a few seconds before exploding violently, throwing the two Salandits backwards.

"Zubat, Leech Life!" Rapp shouted.

"Iron Tail!" Before Zubat could even get close to Turtonator, Pikachu sprang off the dragon's head, swinging its tail at Zubat to violently knock it back down to the ground! They were total sync.

"Wow…" Mizuki was amazed at what she was seeing.

"These two have it under control." Lana nodded firmly.

Of course, right as she said that, Tupp saw his chance and took it. "Dragon Rage!" The only Salandit that hadn't gone down had a chance to attack. It unleashed a stream of bluish-yellow energy that exploded against Pikachu and Turtonator. "Ahaha! How was that!?"

Damage was dealt, but it was far from enough to take either down. Kiawe then crossed his arms, his Z-ring letting off a particular shine. "I think it's time to finish this!" He stomped on the ground, before waving both arms up as though he were fanning a flame; the flame of his own spirit. The Z-power resonated with the Firium-Z on his ring and it all flooded into Turtonator. "All right Turtonator, let's do it! _**INFERNO OVERDRIVE**_!" Turtonator converted the Z-power flooding into it into a large sphere of flame in front of its mouth. With a mighty roar, Turtonator released this fireball, watching it soar towards Team Skull's Pokémon. It exploded on contact, resulting in a dome-like eruption that shook the area. The ensuing pyre was more than enough to take out the opposing trio's pokemon.

Mizuki's eyes were wide at that Z-move. It felt so familiar. She stared at the Z-ring on her wrist, noticing that it lacked a crystal. Did she drop hers? Was it still in her bag? She never really checked that thoroughly. "…That was amazing…"

"That's a Z-move!" Lillie clasped her hands together. "Everyone here can use one. They're really strong moves that truly bring out a trainer and pokemon's power!"

"Z-Move…" Mizuki mumbled. So, could she do that to? It looked like she could, based on her surroundings.

"Gah!" Tupp, Zipp, and Rapp returned their fallen Pokémon. The irony that they were in front of a Pokémon Center, but they were far too embarrassed to even consider stepping into the building now. "You win this round…!" Tupp exclaimed.

"We'll get you…!" Rapp shouted.

"Just you wait!" Said Zipp. And just like that, the trio fled the premises. Ironically, just as they rounded the corner to flee, Marcus, Grace, and the semi-conscious Takeba rounded the same one.

"That was a gigantic waste of time." Marcus rolled his eyes. "But did you see that giant explosion of flame!? That was cool!"

"You're telling me." Grace sighed. "And yes, I did. It came from here…and those Team Skull grunts ran away. So I can only assume that…" She then looked ahead, noticing Ash and his friends. Before she could say anything…

"AH!" Marcus nearly dropped his girlfriend to point at Ash. "I FOUND YOU!"

"Oh!" Ash held a smile at the sight of his old friends. Of course Kiawe and the others were a little confused. "Hey guys! Long time no see! Been doing well?"

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Next Time: Reunion.


	5. Chapter 5: Reunion

Perhaps the annoyance of Team Skull wasn't an inherently a bad thing. It allowed Ash to reunite with some old friends he hadn't seen in a while! And as soon as Marcus laid eyes on Ash, there was one thing he had to say. "Ash! I challenge you to a-!" And that's when Grace hit him in the back of the head. "Ow!?"

"You're such a child! After we heal, dummy." Grace chided.

"R-Right…" With a nervous sweat drop, Marcus went inside the Center after Grace, leaving Ash's friends a little confused.

"Friends of yours?" Mallow asked Ash.

"Mhm!" Ash responded with a wide grin. "I wasn't expecting to see them here. But let's head back inside first."

"Yeah!" Mizuiki agreed. "I need to check my bag some more. I think I just remembered something." Without letting anyone know what progress she made, the girl scurried inside the building, leaving the others just as confused. But it was a good chance for Pikachu and Turtonator to rest since they did take some damage from the battle against Tupp's trio.

When the Alola gang entered the center, Lillie decided to follow Mizuiki with Snowy in her arms. "I wonder what she remembered…" She glanced at the Alolan Vulpix in her arms. _"I still can't get over how she knows me, either…"_ And just as Lillie peeked into Mizuiki's current room, she was surprised at what she saw: the girl dumped the contents of her bag on the bed! "Uhm…"

"Hold on, Lillie…" Mizuki said absentmindedly, as if talking to Lillie was just second nature. This was not lost on Lillie and only made her feel a little more awkward. "I'm looking for something. Ugh, where are they?"

"What are you looking for?" Lillie questioned. If Mizuki remembered something, she was curious as to know what.

"…I don't know. But I'll know it when I see it!" Mizuiki insisted. "You can go ahead. I'll catch up."

"R-Right…" Lillie nodded and left Mizuki to her own devices. This day was just a weird one for her.

.

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Nurse Joy attended to Pikachu, Turtonator, Salamance, and Blastoise. She also just placed a large band-aid on Takeba's head. The girl was fine, just winded from the blow she took from the Pyukumuku. The introductions between Ash's Alola friends and the friends he made from Kalos already took place. "You've certainly been busy here, haven't you, Champion?" Takeba said with a teasing grin. "Congrats on your win, by the way! We knew you had it in you."

"Thanks!" Ash said while rubbing the back of his head, a sheepish grin appearing on his face. "I've even learned how to do laundry and cook a bit too!"

Comical tears started to flow down Takeba's cheeks. Last time she saw Ash, he couldn't even fold a shirt! "They grow up so fast…"

"What brings you all to Alola?" Mallow leaned forward.

"Is that a Shaymin?" Marcus pointed at the small mythical pokemon in Mallow's arms. The fact she was carrying around so casually baffled him!

"We're on vacation." Grace opted to answer the question. "Takeba wanted to bathe in the Alolan sun, and she dragged us along with her."

"I hope you're enjoying Alola so far!" Lana said with a bright smile. "It's a wonderful place, isn't it? Have you tried fishing yet?"

"Not yet." Marcus shook his head. "If Takeba tried it, she might get pulled in by a Sharpedo or something."

"Hey, that's rude!" Takeba puffed her cheeks out. "I'm not that clumsy!"

"…You got punched by a Pyukumuku." Grace replied.

"You really should watch out for them. They don't take kindly to being stepped on." Lillie said.

"I-I learned…" Takeba's expression fell comically. It was enough to get a chuckle out of everyone.

"That aside, fishing is fun! I've even caught a Kyorge." The blue haired girl smiled. But her tale was met with skepticism.

"I don't buy it." Marcus scoffed.

"No, it's true! I saw it for my own eyes!" Ash said. Ash was never one to lie and with excitement in his tone told it all.

"WH?!" The trio of Marcus, Takeba, and Grace gasped. Their reaction caused Lana to poke her tongue out playfully.

"Your new friends are really something, then…" Grace said.

The doors to the center opened once more. This time it was Scott practically dragging Elizabeth inside. "Honestly, woman. Have you no shame?"

"I lost my concept of shame a long time ago." Elizabeth said flatly. When passing by the others, she waved to them absentmindedly, as her thoughts were still on Plumeria and Mina. "Hey guys." Give her a minute. "Wait…huh!? You guys are here!?"

"I told you they were!" Scott groaned. Seriously, it was like she didn't listen.

"More friends?" Kiawe asked Ash, who just nodded. The starry eyed expression on Ash's face said it all; he was far too excited to see his old friends again!

"You sure know a lot of people, don't you?" Sophocles asked.

Nurse Joy returned with Pikachu and the pokeballs that held Blastoise, Turtonator, and Salamance. "Here you are. I'll take yours now, too." She gave her usually friendly smile, taking Zoroark and Darmanitan's Pokeballs. "I'll be back soon."

As soon as Pikachu returned, Sophocles' Togedemaru tackled it, nuzzling into it with happy squeaks. This just made Takeba chuckle. "Pikachu seems to have new friends as well."

Cue another round of introductions between Elizabeth, Scott, and Ash's Alola friends. As it stood now, they were getting along fairly well at the moment. Elizabeth sat down and placed her hands on her lap. "You have no idea how happy I am to see friendly faces. This region has been killing me, literally."

"It would help if you dressed for the region." Kiawe said, puffing his chest out. "The Alolan sun is harsh, but even under these conditions; it just makes my spirit burn brighter!" It was also easy for the shirtless guy to talk.

"That doesn't help me!" Elizabeth whined. "I'm from Sinnoh, this place feels like an oven no matter what I do!"

"It really would help if you took off the winter gear." Grace added, but clearly Elizabeth refused.

"Anyway, we would have been here sooner if Team Skull didn't interrupt us." Scott explained. "I also had to pry this one," He points to Elizabeth, "away from…whatever was happening."

"You robbed me." Elizabeth glared.

To that, the Alola natives had sweat drops on their foreheads. "We're really sorry about them. We thought they were done causing trouble." Mallow bowed. The fact that Team Skull even bothered tourists!

"Ash sure has some interesting friends, doesn't he?" Mallow told Lille and Lana, who just nodded in agreement.

"There's one more, actually…" Lillie glanced back. Just as she did, Mizuki appeared, rushing in with her bag and a great big smile on her face.

"I found it!" Mizuki said excitedly while rushing to the others.

"…Who's that?" Grace asked.

"Uh…" Lana wasn't so sure how to answer that at first. "We don't know. Ash and I found her and brought her here. It turns out she has amnesia. She doesn't remember anything, not even her own name. Except…" Everyone's gazes went to Lillie. "But we settled on Mizuki for now."

"That's weird. You know her or something?" Elizabeth asked.

And just as before, Lillie shook her head. "I've never seen her before!" She couldn't reiterate this point enough today.

"Maybe she's from another world or something…" Takeba suggested.

"Don't be an idiot." Elizabeth scoffed, shooting down that idea before it could even fly. "Who's ever heard of something as ridiculous as that?"

"Well…" Ash was about to say something, but that's when Mizuki just kind of…dumped the contents of her bag on the table. "Huh!?"

Mizuki dumped numerous Z-crystals onto the table. She had every type of Z-crystal one could obtain normally, which came as an absolute shock to the Alola gang! "Watching that Z-move triggered something in my memory. I knew I had these lying around after!"

"A-All these Z-crystals!" Sophocles didn't even know what to say.

"Fire, Water, Grass, Psychic…" Lillie mentally counted them off. "One for every type is in here!"

"W-Where did you get these?!" Kiawe's expression turned into one of exaggerated shock, as if his whole life had been thrown upside down. "I've only seen the Kahunas with this collection!"

All eyes were on Mizuki. This was a little more serious than she thought. "…No idea!" She responded with a wide grin. Everyone fell over. She at least remembered something, so it was progress, but this only shrouded the mystery of her identity in a deeper fog. They would need a stronger Defog if they wanted to know who this girl was or where she came from.

"That looks like a pretty big deal." Takeba leaned over the table. "Ooooh! Are those Z-crystals! They're so pretty!"

Mizuki's eyes wandered to Takeba. "…Who are you?" And now they all had to introduce themselves to Mizuki, with Takeba being last.

"Takeba Vermillion!" Takeba introduced herself. "An heiress of the Kanto region and…!"

"A huge idiot." Elizabeth said with a cocky smirk. That deflated Takeba immediately.

"…" Takeba didn't say anything at first. But she did almost try to drag Elizabeth outside into the sun. "C'mon, how about you enjoy the sun some more!?"

"No, wait! You wouldn't dare!" Elizabeth pleaded. "I actually have something important to tell you all! That includes you!" She pointed at Ash.

"Uh…" Ash pointed at himself. He then glanced over to the Mizuki debacle.

"We'll talk with her. Go talk to your old friends!" Mallow pushed Ash ahead.

.

.

Elizaeth gathered Ash, Takeba, Scott, Grace, and Marcus at another table on the opposite side of the building. "I'm not in this oven for no reason. I actually have a bit of an important mission tasked to me by Looker."

"Eh? Looker?" Takeba crossed her arms. "What did he want?"

"…You're not going to like what I'm about to say." The bluenette's tone grew serious. "But as it turns out, Ein escaped from prison."

"WH-!?"

Elizabeth held her hand out to stop them before they got any louder. "And that's not all. Do you remember Miror B.? Sources claimed that he aided Ein out of jail. It didn't seem like any of the other Chiper Admins escaped. But having Ein on the loose is a huge deal since Miror. B escaped the hideout in Kalos with some stray Shadow Pokémon."

"You're kidding me…" Marcus pinched the bridge of his nose. "At least Venus didn't escape." If they never had to deal with her again it would be too soon.

"And you're here in Alola because intel has told you they were here somewhere?" Scott summed up Elizabeth's situation nicely.

"Exactly." Elizabeth nodded.

"It would be really bad if Ein got more Shadow Pokémon out there." Ash said and Pikachu made a noise to agree. The last thing he wanted was for something as terrible in Kalos to happen in Alola!

"I was hoping to relax a bit more, but if we have to start a manhunt, I wouldn't be opposed." Grace stood up from her seat. "I have a personal score to settle with him."

Elizabeth was glad to know they were all on her side. "I'll let you know if I find anything. Right now I've got no leads. Lovrina was supposed arrive soon to help. I'd rather just wait on her than cook myself to death in this sun."

.

.

"So…I'm in a region called Alola?" Mizuki stared up at the ceiling. "That sounds familiar all right.

"That's right." Mallow replied with a nod. "Ash and Lana found you on the way to the Pokémon School."

"I see…" Mizuki was putting away the Z-crystals in her bag. "And these things here are Z-Rings. I remember that much. The Z-crystals let Pokémon and Trainers use an ultimate move, like with what Kiawe did earlier. I also remember that, but I…don't know where my Pokémon are. I know I have some…"

"I'm sure they're looking for you too." Lillie spoke with a reassuring smile. "So as soon as you're feeling better, we'll go out and look for them!"

"What do you mean, Lillie? I feel fine!" Mizuki puffed her chest out, trying really hard to ignore the searing pain in her back that still remained. Her brave face was appreciated but it wasn't fooling anyone.

"You really remember Lillie, don't you?" Lana inquired. It was the most sure thing Mizuki knew ever since she woke up.

"Well, yeah." Nodding, Mizuki's hazel gaze went to Lillie. "I've known her for a long time…I remember that. That was the only thing I remembered when I woke up. I was really glad to see she wasn't hurt."

Awkward silence. This didn't explain anything, especially not to Lillie. "I-I see…" The blonde responded.

"If we're going to help get your memory back, where should we start…?" Kiawe was pondering this.

"Maybe we could go to where Ash and Lana found her?" Sophocles suggested. "Maybe the Kahunas might know something as well! After all, she's got all those Z-crystals…and that Z-ring of hers is…"

"That's a great idea!" Mallow mused. "Hala has to know something! After all, you can't get the Fightinium-Z without beating him first!"

"Hala? Who's that?" Mizuki blinked several times.

"…She really must not remember a lot." Kiawe refused to believe Mizuki didn't know who Hala was. "But that's fine! We have our first step!"

The discussion at the other table ended. Ash hurried back to his Alola friends after catching the tail end of the conversation. "You're going to see Hala?"

"Yeah!" Mallow answered. "If Mizuki has all these Z-crystals, then clearly she's fought Hala before! So maybe he knows something about her!"

"It's our only lead so far. Aside from going to where you found her." Lillie added. "We also have to help her find her Pokémon too!" They had a pretty long list to help this girl, but they clearly didn't mind.

"You're all so nice…" It almost brought Mizuki to tears. "I knew I could count on you too, Lillie!"

"Ah…" Lille held a bashful smile. "You're welcome…"

"HOLD IT!" Marcus exclaimed. Now that they all caught up and their pokemon recovered, he was not letting this chance slip him by. "Before we do anything else, I'm going to say what I wanted to when we first arrived! Ash, Champion of Alola! I challenge you to a battle!" He had been waiting for who knows how long to say that!

"…We're kinda busy right now." Elizabeth face palmed.

"Don't you have to help Mizuki get her memories back?" Scott asked.

"N-No, it's fine!" Mizuki waved her hands. "I actually want to see a battle! I can wait! It's not like my memory is going anywhere." _"Champion of Alola…?"_ Now where did she hear that before…?

With the okay from the girl in question, Ash turned to face Marcus with a grin. It had been a long time since they last battled and even Pikachu was brimming with excitement. "Okay! You're on!"

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Next Time: Reunion Battle.


	6. Chapter 6: Reunion Battle

Marcus and Ash were going to battle at the beach near Professor Kukui's house. Before that, however, Lillie had to make a quick stop back at her mansion. She wanted to grab Magearna so it could witness the battle and interact with the others more. "Are you ready to go, Magearna?" The mechanical fairy nodded.

"If I may have your attention for a moment…" Said Homs, the butler of Lillie's residence.

"What is it, Homs?" Lillie turned curiously.

"Your mother is on the line. If you can spare a moment, would you speak with her? She claims that it's important." Homs explained.

Important? It did pique Lillie's curiosity. She could spare a few moments. "All right." Nodding, the young girl went over to the large communication screen, where Lusamine waited on the other line. "Good afternoon, Mother. I heard you wanted to ask me something?"

"Good morning my sweet Lillie!" Overbearing mother Lusamine this early? It took a lot for Lillie not to step back and turn the screen off right then and there. That aside, the overbearing mother did have an important question. "Has anything happened between last night and today? There was a reading that an Ultra Wormhole opened up on Melemele Island. I was worried that another Ultra Beast may have appeared."

"An Ultra Wormhole?" Lillie tilted her head slightly before shaking it. "No, we haven't seen any Ultra Beasts." But what she was just told did coincide with a certain someone's arrival earlier today. It could have been entirely possible that it was one and the same. "There may have been one thing, but I need to make absolute sure. I don't want to jump to conclusions. I don't think it's dangerous, though."

So there was something? Lusamine couldn't help but be curious, but she also trusted her daughter's words. "All right. If you find anything out, please let me know. I'll continue doing research on my end, too." With a sweet smile and wave, the call then ended.

"An Ultra Wormhole opened last night, and Ash and Lana found Mizuki this morning…" The pieces of the puzzle were lining up. This may have solved the mystery of _where _Mizuki came from, but it didn't explain who she was or why she was here…or why she claimed to know her so well. Snowy sensed that Lillie was still feeling stressed. Magearna noticed as well and attempted to comfort her. The blonde smiled at their attempts to cheer her up. "Thanks you two. Now we should really get going. We don't want to keep the others waiting."

.

.

While the others were waiting for Lillie on the beach, Takeba couldn't help but stare at Rotom. The floating Pokedex had been weirding her out for a while, but she wasn't sure if anyone would comment on it. "So, uh…I didn't ask before, but that's a Rotom, right?"

"Correct! Bzzt. "Rotom held an arm up. "I'm Rotom, nice to meet you! I was snapping pictures of all of Mizuki's Z-crystals-roto!"

"Oh, so that's what that flash was…" Mizuki rubbed the back of her head. Now that Lillie was gone, she felt a little awkward being alone around the others; even though Lillie, to her, was being oddly distant.

"Rotom, huh…" Elizabeth stared at the floating Pokedex. "I feel a little weirded out knowing that this pokemon is slowly taking over technology."

"Rotom's harmless!" Ash reassured.

"I wouldn't hurt a Cutiefly-roto!" Rotom said before snapping a few pictures of Elizabeth, Grace, Marcus, and Scott. For the memory album. "Pardon me!"

"Really has a mind of its own, doesn't it…" Grace said with a nervous smile.

"It likes taking photos." Mallow laughed a bit.

"Of everything." Lana added.

"I hope it takes a victory snapshot of when I win!" Marcus flexed.

"Such a child…" Grace rolled her eyes. But she did laugh a bit. It was nice to see her friend so excited.

After a bit of a wait, Lillie finally arrived with Magearna in tow. "Sorry for the wait, everyone!"

"Wha…!?" Elizabeth's jaw dropped.

"…Is that a Magearna?" Scott lifted a brow. Between the Shaymin in Mallow's arms and now the Magearna Lillie just so casually brought, Ash's friends certainly had been busy. "He seems to have an uncanny talent for making amazing friends."

"Whoa…" Mizuki's eyes had sparkles in them at the Magearna present.

"All right you guys." Ash threw two pokeballs up, calling out Lycanroc and Incineroar on the sidelines. As for his bag, he handed it to Kiawe, who took the sleeping Rowlet out.

"Huh!?" Mizuiki gasped. "You had that bird in your bag this whole time!?"

"Yeah, he likes to sleep there." Ash laughed.

"New pokemon all around, huh?" Marcus smirked while taking to one side of the beach. "You're not the only one with a team upgrade. Three on three, sound good?"

"Perfect!" Ash nodded.

"Pi!" Pikachu hopped first, ready to fight. But that's when Ash had to casually place his day oen partner on the sidelines.

"Sorry Pikachu, but I wanna use someone else first!" Ash said. Whenever he told Pikachu this, Pikachu always sulked a bit. Today was no different.

"All right!" Lana would serve as the judge for this bout. "This battle will be over when one side's pokemon are unable to battle!"

"I can't wait!" Sophocles couldn't sit still. "I heard these two had a grand battle back in the Kalos Regional Tournament. To witness it in front of us…"

"It's going to be amazing!" Kiawe exclaimed. He could already feel the flames of excitement in the air as Ash and Marcus prepared to do battle.

"You got it this time! Take him down!" Takeba cheered.

"Right!" Marcus nodded. With a smirk, the black haired male tossed an Ultra Ball into the air. "Zangoose, let's rock!" Out from the pokeball came a new addition to his team: Zangoose!

"Zangoose!" Rotom wasted no time flying over to Zangoose, snapping a few photos of the mongoose. "Zangoose, the cat ferret Pokémon! It has feuded with Seviper for many generations. Memories of battling its archrival are etched into every cell of its body. This pokemon adroitly dodges attacks with incredible agility."

"Oh, a Zangoose? That's cool!" Ash grinned before tossing a Pokémon up. "Melmetal, you're up!" And from the pokeball came the metal behemoth known as Melmetal! The giant flexed a few times, and its appearance just caused the jaws of Marcus, Grace, Takeba, and Elizabeth to drop.

"WHAT IS THAT!?" Moon gasped. "Is that really a Pokémon!?"

"No way it is!" Marcus pointed his finger.

"That's unlike anything I've ever seen…" Grace crossed her arms. She tried to remain composed, but this was so bizarre.

"First that weird Greninja, now this? Where do you get these things…" Elizabeth just didn't get it.

"A-Anyway! We're starting now!" Marcus pointed a hand forward. "Quick Attack!" Zangoose started to sprint forward. Its speed was incredible and it was closing in fast! Before Ash could utter a command, Zangoose slammed into Melmetal, but it didn't look like any damage was dealt. "No way…alright, try Crush Claw!" Zangoose's claws lit up in a fierce aura and it viciously raked them across Melmetal's body. Another direct hit, but Melmetal simply endured it! "No way!?"

"That thing is sturdy…" Mizuki mumbled.

"Now it's our turn! Double Iron Bash!" Ash commanded.

"Double what?" Marcus blinked. Melmetal began to spin around before hurling one of its arms at Zangoose. The limbs of Melmetal stretched, throwing both trainer and pokemon off guard. "Quick Attack!" Zangoose was narrowly able to avoid the first punch coming its way, but Melmetal spun around and whipped its second arm forward, slamming right into Zangoose and sent it sprawling into the sand!

"Oh, I felt that…" Kiawe said.

"Zangoose, you okay!?" Marcus asked. Zangoose shook off the impact and nodded.

"Flash Cannon!" Melmetal's eye began to gather light energy before it fired off a large beam of it at Zangoose!

"Let's switch this up! Jump up!" Zangoose sprinted forward, using its natural speed to easily avoid the Flash Cannon and leapt into the air. "Fire Blast!" Zangoose inhaled before throwing its entire upper body forward, releasing a potent burst of flame from its lips! This blast of flame exploded directly against Melmetal, creating a thick cloud of smoke. Melmetal even cried out after that incredibly strong hit. "Got it!" And as the smoke cleared…Meltmetal was seen standing. "Huh!?"

"Nice job enduring it, Melmetal!" Ash smirked. "Now, Thunderbolt!" Melmetal complied, firing off a strong bolt of lightning that struck the falling Zangoose for a direct hit! Zangoose cried out as it hit the ground.

Zangoose was able to stand up. But it was clearly getting weakened by the two hits it just took. Was Melmetal really that strong?" Dang, I wasn't anticipating this…" But that just made the battle more exciting. "Circle around it with Quick Attack!" Zangoose nodded and used its speed to its advantage once again. Melmetal couldn't even keep up as it tried to turn its head to follow Zangoose. "Close Combat!" With speed as its edge, Zangoose aimed several sharp blows across Melmetal's body. Each hit left a mark and only frustrated the metal creature to the point it used a Double Iron Bash on its own! It spun around haphazardly, unintentionally hitting Zangoose in the process. "Ah!"

"Melmetal, calm down!" Ash had to calm his flustered Pokémon.

"Sometimes it does this…" Mallow told the others with a sweat drop.

Zangoose was still in prime position. "Crush Claw!" Shaking off the Double Iron Bash, Zangoose jumped up, slamming its claw into Melmetal's nut shaped head! The impact caused an explosion and the mongoose jumped back, panting heavily. And to everyone's surprise, Melmetal was just flexing after all of that. Zangoose looked back at Marcus with a 'what am I supposed to do about this' kind of look.

"Nice Melmetal! Now, Double Iron Bash one more time!" Ash saw this opening. To make matters worse for Marcus, Close Combat lowered Zangoose's defenses! Once again, Melmetal spun around, whipping one arm after the other.

The first punch, however, was directed at the ground! This caused sand to fly up and obscure the sight of Zangoose. This momentary blindness allowed the second punch to hit its mark! Zangoose flew backwards and landed on the sand, KO'ed. "Ah…!" Marcus didn't even realize what happened until it did.

"Zangoose is unable to battle! Melmetal is the winner!" Lana declared.

"Wow, he turned that around fast." Mizuki said. Ironically, everyone present was able to respond with the same phrase.

"He tends to do that."

"Thanks Zangoose. You did great." Marcus returned Zangoose with a smile before turning to Ash. "This is just what I was expecting. You haven't slacked off at all, and neither have we! Haxorus, you're up next!" Out from his next Pokeball came the mighty dragon, Haxorus! "Dragon Dance!" Haxorus roared as a black-crimson aura flared around its body, increasing its Attack and Speed stats!

"Haxorus!" Rotom snapped photos from afar. It didn't want to get in the middle of the battle and ruin anything. "The Axe Jaw Pokémon! While usually kindhearted, it can be terrifying if angered. Tusks that can slice through steel beams are how Haxorus deals with its adversaries."

"I noticed! Melmetal, Flash Cannon!" Ash commanded. Melmetal fired off another potent beam of silver energy towards Haxorus!

"Incinerate!" Haxorus reared its head back, a trail of flames seeping from its mouth. When the dragon threw its head forward, it unleashed a large sphere of flame to clash against the Flash Cannon. The two attacks exploded and created a lingering cloud of smoke. "Dragon Claw!" Using its increased speed, Haxorus sped through the smoke, rearing its claw back as an emerald aura appeared around it.

"Harden!" Ash said at the last second. Just before impact, Melmetal crossed its arms, blocking the hit with increased defenses. Still, Haxorus' raw power left the others in shock as the large metal giant was still skidding backwards! The pain did cause Melmetal to act a bit irrationally again, thus leading to a Thunderbolt being fired off instinctively!

"Iron Tail!" Haxorus' tail shone brightly. It used the steel properties of Iron Tail to deflect the Thunderbolt. This allowed its tail to slam into Melmetal's head, finally defeating the iron giant that refused to go down!

"Melmetal is unable to battle!" Lana said, pointing to Haxorus. "Haxorus is the winner!"

"This seems a little more intense than it did last time, somehow…" Takeba mentioned.

Mizuki's eyes were sparkling the whole time. "He used Iron Tail to nullify Thunderbolt? That was so cool!"

"Thanks, Melmetal." Ash returned the steel type. "You take a good rest." The next pokeball he had was a bit strange. "Naganadel, you're up next!" And out came the Ultra Beast.

"Okay, _that's_ not even a Pokémon! Don't even try to tell me it is!" Marcus pointed at Ash accusingly. "What is that thing!?"

"I've never seen anything like it…!" Mizuki was a little unnerved and scooted closer to Lillie. While this was for comfort, it only made Lillie feel even more stressed than she already was.

"WHERE DO YOU FIND THESE THINGS!?" Elizabeth shouted.

"This is an Ultra Beast! It came from another world." Ash explained. "Right now, it's staying with me until it can return home again."

"AH HA!" Takeba pointed at Elizabeth. "I knew other world existed!"

"But, I don't…" Elizabeth could not believe this. "Your guess doesn't count!" Regardless of the confusion, Naganadel let out a happy noise as it was glad to be the center of attention.

"It's kind of cute, though…" Grace mumbled.

Before the battle could get started, Naganadel instinctively made its way over to Mizuki, staring curiously at her. "...?"

"Uhm..." Mizuki hid behind Lillie a little more, unsure of why this strange otherworldly creature was staring at her so much. "C-Can I help you?"

"What's wrong?" Ash asked the Ultra Beast. It never acted like this before. "She's a new friend, you don't need to worry about it!" Nanagadel made a noise. It understood that it was looking at a person, but for some reason, it was getting a strange vibe from her as well. A strange, familiar vibe that reminded it of a... "Come on, let's get back to the battle!"

"...That was odd..." Scott remarked.

"..." Lillie didn't say a word. She glanced back at Mizuki. The reaction Naganadel had pushed her own curiosity further.

Back to the battle! "Naganadel, X-Scissor!"

"Haxorus, Dragon Claw!"

Naganadel had the advantage of flight on its side. The Ultra Beast pointed its stinger forward, lunging toward Haxorus with malicious intent. The duel between dragons grew extremely intense as claw and stinger collided, but the momentum both sides gathered caused them to slide backwards. Haxorus roared and sprinted forward again. "Sludge Bomb!" Ash commanded on a dime. Naganadel fired off multiple globs of sludge at Haxorus.

"Iron Tail!" Not stopping its charge, the dragon type violently swung its tail at the incoming Sludge Bomb, knocking it away before it became an issue. It then swung its tail yet again, slamming into Naganadel's side and sent it flying away.

Naganadel cried out in pain but was able to recover quickly. "Dragon Pulse!" The Ultra Beast used its flight to its advantage, flying around Haxorus until settling on a position directly above it. From its stinger, a burst of multicolored energy exploded out and struck Haxorus directly, a small explosion occurring from the impact.

"Haxorus!" Marcus called out in worry. Haxorus was damaged from the hit, but it wasn't enough to take it out. "Perfect. Now, Incinerate!" Just as before, Haxorus fired off multiple orbs of flame at the airborne Naganadel. Taking down such an agile target was not an easy task. Numerous fiery explosions lit up the skies, but not a single one hit its target!

Ash was simply waiting for the right moment to strike. When he saw the opening, he went for it. "Thunderbolt!" Naganadel spun around, finding a small safe spot from all the explosions. Another large bolt of lightning was released from its body, striking Haxorus directly!

"And here I thought Pikachu was the only member of his team with an electric type attack…" Marcus smirked while mumbling. "Iron Tail!" Using the continuous bolt of lightning to their advantage, Haxorus used Iron Tail to conduct the elecrity into its tail. It then proceeded to used its Dragon Dance boost to propel itself into the sky, violently swinging its electrified tail into Naganadel, sending it plummeting down to the ground! "Finish it with Dragon Claw!"

"Not so fast! Nadanagel, fly out of there!" Naganadel did manage to catch itself as it fell. Just before it hit the ground it recovered, gliding low across the ground. It did so just in time, as Haxorus came down with a mighty Dragon Claw, but hit nothing but sand. "Sludge Bomb!" With the advantage temporarily theirs, Naganadel launched more globs of sludge at Haxorus and they hit! "Now into the air!"

"We won't let you! Dragon Claw!" Haxorus had speed on its side. Before the Ultra Beast could launch itself into the air, Haxorus swatted it out of the air with a downward swipe, inflicting heavy damage in the process! "Dragon Dance again!" Now they were really setting up.

"Ah!" Ash grit his teeth. Haxorus was starting to oppress them with speed and power. If this kept going, it wouldn't be good. But Ash had an idea. "X-Scissor!"

"He wants to get closer to that thing!?" Mizuki shook her head. "That's too dangerous!"

"Ash always seems like he's out of his mind, and he is. But he's got a good reason for it, usually." Kiawe reassured the panicking amnesiac.

"Meeting us head on? We'll make you regret it! Dragon Claw!" Haxorus and Naganadel entered a fierce clash once again. Haxorus swung its claws at the evasive Naganadel, who attempted to stab Haxorus with its stinger. Eventually they ended up clashing, but in this contest of strength, Haxorus was bound to be the winner! "Finish it off!"

"My thoughts exactly! Dragon Pulse!" Ash smirked. He wanted to get close so Haxorus couldn't get away! No matter what option they took, this Dragon Pulse would finish them off!

"…!" Marcus realized this ploy too late. But he wasn't going down without a fight. "Incinerate!" Both Pokémon let out their attacks at the same time. The result was an explosion of flame and raw energy that surrounded the two of them. When the smoke cleared, both Haxorus and Nagandel were down.

"Both Naganadel and Haxorus are down! This battle is a draw! Meaning both sides have one Pokémon left!" Lana was totally excited and it showed. This battle had been a blast to watch!

"Nice job, Haxorus. You took down two." Marcus smiled and returned Haxorus with a smile. "Man, a new Pokémon and a creature not even from this world? You sure keep busy, don't you?"

"So do you! Zangoose was really strong!" Ash gave the compliment before glancing towards Pikachu. "Okay buddy, you ready!?"

Finally! Pikachu grinned and nodded, hopping forward with lightning sparking from its cheeks. "Pika!"

"This one's for you. Dragonite, I choose you!" Marcus' final pokemon was a very familiar one. Dragonite burst from the Pokeball, letting out a mighty roar.

"Dragonite!?" Ash's eyes widened.

"Is that...?" Elizabeth trailed off.

"Mhm." Grace nodded. "It's Kasumi's."

Rotom absolutely could not resist this. "Dragonite: the Dragon Pokémon. It is said that this Pokémon lives on the seas! If you incur its wrath, it will blow everything to smithereens!"

"…So the Pokedex entries in Alola are designed to make you feel fear, is that right?" Elizabeth asked.

"Okay Dragonite, let's do this! Draco Meteor!" They were starting strong! Dragonite pointed its head up into the air, firing off an orb of orange energy into the sky. This orb then exploded into multiple meteors that descended onto the ground before!

"Iron Tail!" Ash commanded. Pikachu nodded and sprang into the air, using Iron Tail to propel and climb the descending meteors. They were undaunted in the face of a Draco Meteor!

This was exactly what Marcus was aiming for. Dragonite had already flown into the sky, waiting for Pikachu's climb to the top. "Just what we wanted! Fire Punch!" Flames ignited around Dragonite's fist and it swung for Pikachu's chest. Alas it was countered with an Iron Tail. The two were in a stalemate before they were forced some distance apart, but Dragonite still had the advantage. "Dragon Pulse!" Dragonite roared and fired off a beam of multicolored energy that exploded against Pikachu, sending it falling to the ground. "And Dragon Rush!" Cloaking itself in that same energy, Dragonite dove down and attempted to slam into Pikachu as it fell!

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the sand!" Pikachu caught itself as it fell. Just before it hit the ground, it used Iron Tail, kicking up sand as a makeshift Sand Attack while also springing it over Dragonite, who was blinded by the sand for a bit. "Thunderbolt!" Pikachu then charged up as much electricity as it could before launching the bolt of lightning at Dragonite for a direct hit!

"Go Ash!" Mallow cheered. "That was awesome!"

Dragonite recoiled from the hit but it stood tall. "Fire Punch!" Once again, flames ignited around Dragonite's fists. It flew forward, swinging at Pikachu with all its might. Pikachu was able to dodge these attacks, but a punch did catch it square in the gut and sent it flying away. Just as Dragonite held its follow through, sparks appeared around its body! Pikachu's static caused it to get paralyzed. "No way…!"

Pikachu spun around, wincing from the hit. Just as it recovered, flames burst around its body! Just as Dragonite was paralyzed, Pikachu was burned! The irony. "No way…they both got status?" Mizuki was leaning forward a bit, more invested in this battle than anyone else.

"Funny…" Marcus couldn't help but laugh. "You good?!" Dragonite nodded. "Right, Dragon Pulse!" Dragonite fired off not one, but multiple blasts towards Pikachu! It was using the same level of power, but each shot was only slightly weaker than a single blast.

"Quick Attack!" Pikachu started to sprint in a zig-zag motion, narrowly avoiding each Dragon Pulse. It closed the distance between the two of them and slammed its head into Dragonite's chest. The burn did cut the overall strength of Pikachu's physical attack, meaning Dragonite didn't have much recoil!

"Fire Punch!" Dragonite threw its fist at Pikachu. But due to the paralysis, it lagged. This gave Pikachu more than enough time to place its hands on Dragonite's wrist, avoiding the punch while flipping into the air above it. "Huh!?"

"Iron Tail!" Pikachu used momentum to its advantage to make up for the burn. Pikachu's tail slammed into Dragonite's skull, crushing it into the sand below with great force! After the blow, Pikachu flipped backwards.

"Draco Meteor!" Dragonite wasn't done yet! It titled its head up at the perfect angle, releasing another orb of energy. This orb struck Pikachu and carried it into the air with a cry of pain.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried.

"Pikaaaa!" Pikachu shouted in pain. It was caught in the middle of the explosion and now surrounded by falling meteors! On top of its burn, it wasn't doing too well!

"We got it now!" Marcus smirked. Just a little more and that mouse was done for! "Dragon Rush!"

"Use Quick Attack!" Pikachu righted itself in the air, using the falling meteors as platforms to ascend to the sky. Of course it was out in the open and had nowhere to go, but anywhere was better than the ground where the exploding meteors hit! As Dragonite neared, there was but one command Ash could give. "Electro…"

"_There it is!" _Marcus' smirk widened as Dragonite drew closer to Pikachu. _"Dragonite will evade the Electro Ball and we'll finish this!"_

"Web!"

"Huh!?" That wasn't the command he was expected!

Electricity gathered around Pikachu's tail. It looked like Electoball at first, but the orb of lightning then turned into web! This web wrapped around Dragonite, firmly stopping it in its place while delivering a fierce shock! Dragonite thrashed about while in the web, but it was unable to free itself. When Pikachu landed, Ash placed the Steelnium-Z in his Z ring! "All right, now's our chance!" Z-power started to resonate with the crystal, and was soon flooding into Pikachu! When Ash banged his fists together, the metallic sound could be heard as the two of them were prepared to unleash their trump card!

"Wait, what's happening!?" Marcus didn't like what was happening, especially since Dragonite was a sitting duck!

"Is that a Z-move!?" Takeba gasped.

"Have a taste of Alola's power! _**CORKSCREW CRASH!**_" Pikachu jumped into the air, its body rotating until it took the shape of a spinning drill! Iron Tail was turned into this powerful attack. The spinning drill known as Pikachu barreled through the sky, colliding with the trapped Dragonite before anyone realized what hit it! There was an explosion and Pikachu landed on the ground, panting heavily as it received damage from its burn. But the battle had already been decided, as Dragonite was down after such an attack.

"Dragonite is unable to battle! That means Ash is the winner!" Lana proclaimed.

"Nice job, Ash! That was awesome!" Sophocles said.

"I got a lot of data-roto!" Rotom was going through a quick slideshow of all the photos it took. It was more than happy with the progress it made.

"So that's a Z-move, huh?" Marcus laughed while returning Dragonite. "Alola's something else, isn't it? I can see how you won the championship." He lost again, but he didn't mind. He and Ash shook hands as the sign of a battle well fought.

"You both were phenomenal." Lillie complimented the both of them. "That battle was so exciting; I couldn't take my eyes off of it!"

"Ehehe, thanks." Marcus rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Are you satisfied, now?" Grace asked. "You got your battle."

"Yes, I'm good now." Marcus nodded before pointing at Kiawe. "I dunno if he is, though." And then Mizuki. "Or her."

"Gaaah! That battle was amazing! It lit up my own fiery spirit!" Kiawe shouted. For a moment one could see the flames of his passion erupting all around him! "I want to challenge you all to a battle now too!"

"Me too!" Said Mizuki, the girl without any Pokémon. "I really wanna battle! I can't stand by and watch all this action go down and not take part!"

"It's like she forgot she forgot everything…" Takeba whispered. "But I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to do some battling too…"

"Look what you guys did. You infected everyone with your battling bug." Huffing, Grace stepped to the side. She wasn't exempt from this.

"Why don't you all battle then!?" Ash suggested. "It'll be a great way for you all to get to know each other!" After all, the best way to get to know someone was from a friendly battle! "And Mizuki, I'll let you use one of my pokemon. Are you okay with that?" Ash asked both Mizuki and Lycanroc, Incineroar, and Rowlet. They seemed fine with it.

"I'll patch up the injured Pokémon. I have a few berries!" Mallow had berries on hand to help tide over Marcus and Ash's injured Pokémon.

"Cool! Let's do it!" Mizuki was far too excited and she pumped a fist into the air. Acquainting herself with her temporary Pokémon partner was the first step! Old friends vs new friends, what excitement that awaited!

.

Not too far off, Team Rocket was observing the little gathering. "Ugh, a twerp gathering…" Jessie rolled her eyes. But more importantly, there were a number of strong Pokémon waiting to be nabbed!

"If they're going to exhaust themselves for us, then this will be easy pickings!" Meowth rubbed his paws together, a sinister grin appearing on his face. Those twerps were really making it too easy for them!

"This time we'll nab all those Pokémon!" James said. "In the name of Team Rocket!"

.

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Next Time: Old vs New Friends.


	7. Chapter 7: Old vs New Friends

Ash and Marcus' battle ignited the battling spirit of the others! They just had to get in on the action. While they did have to help Mizuki regain her memories, the girl in question clearly wanted to take part in the battles and even set aside her own memories! Maybe her priorities were a little mixed up, but she was dead set on this decision. The first two to battle were going to be Kiawe and Takeba in a 1 on 1 bout!

"All right you two." Scott said, serving as the referee for this bout. "One pokemon each. I don't think I need to explain the rules."

"I got it!" Kiawe grinned and tossed a pokeball out into the open. "Marowak, I choose you!" From Kiawe's pokeball, his Alolan Marowak emerged, spinning its bone around while staring ahead. It was always prepared for a fight!

"Oooooh!" Takeba's green eyes glimmered with excitement and curiosity. "Is that an Alolan Marowak!? I've never seen one before! It looks really cool!" Takeba reached for a pokeball. "I heard it's a ghost type, so if that's the case…Honchkrow, come out!" The big boss pokemon emerged from its pokeball…and immediately started pecking Takeba with its beak. "Ow! Hey! You stupid bird!"

"Uh…" Kiawe and the others weren't really sure how to react to this.

"Yeah, it still does that…" Marcus eventually said.

"Honchkrow: The Big Boss Pokémon!" Rotom was going off on another Pokedex entry. It simply couldn't resist and snapped a picture of the obsidian bird pecking at its trainer. "A single cry from this nocturnal Pokémon and more than a hundred of its Murkrow cronies will assemble!"

"Makes you wonder who's in charge in this case…" Elizabeth mumbled, implying that Honchkrow was the one in charge of Takeba and not the other way around.

Eventually Honchkrow had its fill and cawed, now turning to face Kiawe and his Marowak. "Ugh, did you really have to peck me first…?" Takeba whined before straightening up. "Okay, let's do this thing!"

"Begin!" Scott said.

"Marowak, use Iron Head!" Kiawe made the first move. Marowak's skull hardened and it propelled itself forward, attempting to slam its hardened head right into Honchkrow's chest.

"Psychic!" Takeba commanded. Honchkrow's eyes lit up in a fierce neon blue hue and it grasped Marowak with its telekinesis. Before Kiawe could usher another command, Marowak was slammed into the sand and thrown away all at once, the pink haired woman giving a cheeky grin in the process of it. "How'd that taste?"

Kiawe just grinned. This was going to be a good one! "Bonemerang!" Marowak recovered quickly from the Psychic and tossed its prized bone at the airborne Honchkrow.

"Huh?" Mizuki tilted her head. "That shouldn't…"

"That's not gonna work! Swat it away!" Takeba scoffed at the notion. Bonemerang was a ground type move after all, thus having no effect on Honchkrow! At least that's what she firmly believed as Honchkrow used its wing to bat the bone right back where it came from.

"Oh you're such an idiot…!" Elizabeth saw what was about to happen.

All according to plan! "Shadow Bone!" Marowak jumped and caught its bone, using its momentum to close the distance between it and Honchkrow. The bone was set flame by ghastly energy and promptly slammed into Honchkrow's chest! The impact caused it to fly backwards with a small cry of pain.

"Nice hit, Kiawe!" Mallow cheered.

"Gah! Are you okay!?" Takeba asked Honchkrow. It was pretty tough so of course it was fine! "Perfect. Now let's turn the tables! Mirror Move!" Mirror Move made use of the last move the opponent used. While it wasn't an exact replica, Honchkrow's wings lit up in a similar aura to Marowak's bone and it dove down, slamming its wings into Marowak's chest for a heavy hit! But it didn't stop there; Honchkrow circled back around, attempting to repeat this process.

"Counter with Shadow Bone!" Kiawe shouted. Marowak did just that, using its bone to strike back against Honchkrow's repeated attacks. It would be dangerous if another one of those hit. Kiawe waited until Honchkrow had to circle back around once more before making his move! "Flare Blitz!" Tapping the bone onto its forehead, blue flame ignited around Marowak's weapon of choice before coating its entire body and it turned into a wheel of flame. It slammed into Honchkrow, the two entering a fierce power struggle before the bird was ultimately overpowered and thrown back. Marowak did take some recoil in the process of this.

"Honchkrow!" Takeba cried out worriedly. Honchkrow spiraled out of control for a moment before barely catching itself. "Whew, okay! Let's fire back with Drill Peck!" The bird cawed before diving down once again, only this time its body twisted around in a clockwise rotation, taking the shape of a drill as it dove down and struck Marowak right in the chest, causing it to slide backwards from the direct hit. "Now let's go in for the finish!"

"I agree!" Kiawe crossed his arms over his chest. This prompted the Firium-Z on his Z-Ring to activate, shining brightly with a golden light. The fire type user stomped on the ground, striking a series of poses along with his Marowak. "My battle spirit is blazing! May the fire of my passion burn stronger than the flames of Wela Volcano!"

"Whaaaaaaat's happening!?" Takeba glanced back at the others with a worried expression.

"It's a Z-move!" Marcus warned, having just experienced a similar fate moments ago.

"Don't just stand there!" Grace shouted.

Marowak started to spin its bone around, gathering ghastly, faded blue flames over its weapon! These flames turned into a gigantic orb of fire that had Honchkrow's name all over it! "Taste our full power! _**INFERO OVERDRIVE!**_" This enormous fireball was then hurled towards Honchkrow at full speed!

What a powerful attack. So this was Alolan culture. "We're not going to sit back and take it! Honchkrow, break through it with Superpower!" Honchkrow let out a mighty caw as its body bulked up for a second, and it flew directly towards the Inferno Overdrive!

"She's brave!" Lana gasped.

The two clashed. Honchkrow was putting its best effort to attempt to overpower the Inferno Overdrive. The two attacks ended an explosion that kicked up a large cloud of smoke. Everyone had to shield their eyes from the wind and when the smoke cleared, Honchkrow was defeated. "Honchkrow is unable to battle! That means Kiawe wins this battle!" Scott said.

"Kiawe, you were cool out there!" Sophocles said.

"Takeba was really good out there too!" Lillie added.

"Ah, you got me." Takeba laughed while returning Honchkrow. "Z-moves are really something…"

"You were tough too. Next time let's have an even better bout!" Kiawe said as he and Takeba shook hands.

"You were pretty good out there for being rusty." Marcus said with a wink. He then patted Takeba on the head and her face turned brighter than her hair.

"D-Don't do that in front of everyone…!" The heiress whined but she didn't seem to mind.

.

The next battle was Scott vs. Sophocles with Lillie as the referee. Perhaps all of them battling wasn't such a bad idea after all, since everyone was clearly enjoying themselves a bit. At Scott's side was his Galarian Darmanitan. The variation of the usual Darmanitan had some strange looks from everyone. "Amazing, isn't it?"

"Dude, what is that thing?" Elizabeth pointed. "It's really…ugly."

"I wasn't going to say anything, but that is kind of off putting…" Mizuki poked her fingers together. The others agreed.

"WHOA! That Darmanitan is really cool!" Ash's eyes were glowing. A pokemon he'd never seen before like this!? It was awesome!

"I'm glad someone can appreciate the beauty of this Pokémon. It has plenty of surprises in store." Scott said proudly.

Rotom snapped pictures of this. Unfortunately for it, there was no data to be found on it! "No data! This has never happened before!" It couldn't have any data on a Pokémon so far outside Alola like this. This new discovery excited it!

"So other regions have regional variants, too…" Lillie kept this in mind. "So if you two are ready…please begin!"

"Vikavolt, Zap Cannon!" Sophocles commanded. The electrical bug used its astounding speed to position itself in the air, opening it pincers as an orb of lightning formed in front of its mouth. No time was wasted as the Zap Cannon was fired right for Darmanitan for a devastating attack.

"Ice Punch!" Scott grinned. The Galarian Darmanitan reared its arm back, frost covering its fist. It swung at the Zap Cannon, shattering the electrical orb instantly, much to everyone's surprise.

"Wow, that thing is strong…!" Lana gasped.

"Icicle Crash!" Scott was following up immediately. Darmanitan let out a roar as a strange misty rift appeared in the skies, violently dropping down from above to crash into Vikavolt.

"Dodge it!" Vikavolt's aerodynamic maneuverability was unmatched. Where most Pokémon would have taken a hit from the Icicle Crash, the bug type was able to swiftly evade every icicle that threatened its being. "Now, Signal Beam!" Once it was in the clear it fired off a beam of energy that struck Darmanitan directly! "Nice hit!" And Togedemaru was cheering for both her trainer and companion as a result.

"Interesting." Scott smirked while issuing his next command. "Fire Punch!"

"Huh?" Takeba blinked.

An ice type using a fire type attack? More likely than you'd think. Darmanitan's fist ignited in flames and it lunged forward, slamming its blazing fist into Vikavolt's chest with a rising uppercut! This surprise attack caught Sophocles off guard! "Vikavolt, are you all right!?" Vikavolt did sustain heavy damage, but it wasn't done just yet. "String Shot!" Vikavolt then proceeded to fly around Darmanitan, spewing string to cover its body! No damage was dealt, but this string would ultimately lower Darmanitan's speed, and Vikavolt's speed made it difficult to track.

"…" Scott remained silent, eying the blur that was Vikavolt. "Attempting to outmaneuver us with speed, are you? It's a shame for you that I can predict where you'll strike next." The psychic said calmly.

Sophocles assumed he was just talking, but kept weary. Any friend of Ash's had to be an extremely tough battler. "Now, Zap Cannon again!"

There. "Zen Headbutt." Before Vikavolt could even attack, Darmanitan had already lunged forward. Its lowered speed didn't matter much since it was already in motion before the bug even knew where it was going to stop. A telekinetic force reverberated off Darmanitan's forehead, causing Vikavolt to flinch. This allowed the ice type to slam its head into Vikavolt, sending it sprawling backwards.

But that didn't stop the Zap Cannon from occurring. Just as Zen Headbutt hit, so did Zap Cannon. The two combatants were thrown back, but Darmanitan got the worst of it as Zap Cannon rendered its target paralyzed! "Now's our chance!" The big gamble! Sophocles' Z-Ring started to glow as he activated the Buginium-Z! "We'll finish it with this! _**SAVAGE SPIN-OUT!**_" As the Z-power flooded into and empowered Vikavolt, the insect fired off a large, thick mass of white silk from tis mouth, wrapping Darmanitan inside a cocoon! It then proceeded to slam the cocoon on the ground and tossed it into the air, preparing to finish it off by slicing through it with its jaws! But…

Scott smirked. "That should be enough…" What was he talking about? The damage Darmanitan received. Just as the cocoon was thrown into the air, a burst of flame caused the silk to explode and melt, much to everyone's surprise. Galarian Darmanitan emerged within its Zen-Mode, streaks of flame emitting from its icy body!

"What!?" Marcus nearly fell back.

"It broke out the Z-Move…!" Ash was in awe.

"Fire Punch!" Just as Vikavolt came diving in, Zen Mode Darmanitan beat it to the punch with its newfound speed. The blazing punch knocked Vikavolt back down to the ground!

"It's speed and power went way up…!" Mallow noticed.

"An Ice and Fire type…" Kiawe needed some time to process this rare type combination.

"Now, let's wrap this up with Flare Blitz!" Scott said. Darmanitan cloaked itself in a veil of icy hot flames, now diving towards Vikavolt to put it all on the line!

"Wild Charge!" Vikavolt managed to recover from the Fire Punch. It then released electricity from its body, shrouding itself in a powerful aura before flying at Darmanitan. The two collided for a fierce power struggle that only ended with an explosion and both sides flying back. The damage and recoil the two dealt and received was more than enough to knock the two of them out!

"Both Vikavolt and Darmanitan are down! It is a draw!" Lillie said.

"Wow, that Darmanitan took me off guard…!" Sophocles bashfully rubbed the back of his head.

"And yet you dealt with it rather well. You are most certainly a friend of Ash." Scott said while shaking Sophocles hand. "I'm glad we had the chance to battle. You learn much by battling someone. I hope we can get along while we're together."

.

.

Jessie, James, and Meowth couldn't believe how easy things were for them. Those twerps were really going to run themselves ragged, thus making the capture of their Pokémon all the more simple! "This really is our lucky day!" Meowth grinned while rubbing his paws together. Patience was a virtue!

"They'll be defenseless by the time they finish at this rate. They're using all their Z-moves and won't have a single one left when we strike. Victory has never been more assured!" Jessie was just as excited as her companions. "But there is one thing that bothers me…"

"Is it the new one?" James pointed at Mizuki. "I haven't seen that one before. I wonder what her deal is." The last thing they needed was this newcomer foiling their plans! But they couldn't tell if she was even a threat or not. In truth, even they could notice the lost look on her face, even as she watched the battles.

.

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Just off of the beach was a lost Pichu, aimlessly wandering around what was oddly familiar territory. There was a lot of ruckus coming from the beach and naturally the small rodent was curious as to what was happening. As it rushed to the beach, its nose picked up something! A faint scent of...its trainer, perhaps!? No matter, it had to go and figure out what was going on!

.

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The next battle was Mallow vs Elizabeth; Tsareena vs. Zoroark! The two had already begun their battle and Takeba was the one overseeing the match. While Mallow fought, Grace was the one who got to hold Shaymin and she was trying her absolute best to hold in her internal glee. "Tsareena, use Magical Leaf!" Mallow commanded. Tsareena brought its hands forward, sending multiple leaves towards Zoroark.

"Flamethrower!" Elizabeth shouted. Zoroark opened its mouth, unleashing a stream of orange flame that burned through the Magical Leaf.

"Jump and use Stomp!" Tsareena evaded the Flamethrower by leaping high into the air, lifting her leg up in the process. She then dropped down with considerable speed and strength, aiming to crush Zoroark's head into the ground! Unfortunately for her, Zoroark just narrowly managed to evade the stomp by leaping backwards, but Mallow didn't intend to let them escape. "Trop Kick!"

"Shadow Claw!" Tsareena immediately followed up from the failed Stomp with a swift Trop Kick, but it clashed with Shadow Claw. The two struggled for a bit before Tsareena was overpowered and thrown back. "Nice!"

"Tsareena!" Mallow cried out in worry. That looked like it hurt. But after her battle with Lana in the League, she decided that she would fight with Tsareena until the very end! "Magical Leaf again!" The grass type did as told, firing off multiple leaves, the amount even greater than last time.

"Flamethrower one more time!" Elizabeth just repeated what she did before. Zoroark scorched the leaves, but something was off. The burned leaves obscured their sight. "Oh crap…!"

"Trop Kick!" Tsareena emerged from the burned leaves, swinging her leg right into Zoroark's face! The attack was not only a direct hit, but it also lowered Zoroark's attack in the process. "It worked!"

"Wow, nice job Mallow!" Lana cheered her best friend on.

"Night Daze!" Zoroark recovered from the Trop Kick and slammed its hands on the ground. This caused an outward dome-like explosion of darkness to overtake Tsareena and throw it backwards! "These Alolan Pokémon are tough."

"Tsareena, are you okay?" Mallow asked. Tsareena was able to stand up just fine. "All right! We'll show her our full power!" Mallow crossed her arms and the Grassinium-Z started to resonate with Tsareena.

"Are you serious!? All of you just have these!?" Elizabeth wasn't looking forward to dealing with a Z-move herself, especially when she barely knew what to expect from them!

Mallow and Tsareena were in sync when performing the pose. "Feel the blossoming power of nature!" She crouched before raising her entire body up, spreading her arms apart to complete the Z-pose! That's when the Z-power flooded into Tsareena. _**"BLOOM DOOM!"**_ The sandy beach was suddenly covered in flowers and an emerald beam of light dropped down from above, exploding onto the battlefield to consume Zoroark!

"Brace for impact!" Elizabeth said, for that was all they could really do. The explosion shook the beach and everyone anxiously waited for the result. As it cleared, Zoroark was heavily damaged, but it wasn't down. "You endured, nice job!"

"It survived!" Mallow gasped.

"Now, Focus Blast!" While Mallow and Tsareena were in shock that their Z-move failed, Elizabeth took this chance to finish things off! Zoroark fired a condensed sphere of energy at Tsareena.

"Trop Kick!" Mallow couldn't let things end here. Her goal was to kick the Focus Blast right back at Zoroark, however Tsareena simply wasn't strong enough to follow through with this. As such, Focus Blast exploded on the regal grass type, leaving it KO'ed in the sand. "Ah…!"

"Tsareena is unable to battle! That means Elizabeth wins! And narrowly, at that." She added with a taunting smirk.

"At least I won mine!" Elizabeth fired back.

"Are they always like this?" Mizuki asked Ash.

"…Yeah." Ash could only nod. "But that just shows how close they are!"

.

The last battle planned was Grace vs. Lana. So far everyone had a fun time battling and getting to know one another through it. Grace was using her ever trusted companion, Venusaur, while Lana was using Primarina. To join in on the fun, Mizuki was the one watching over this bout. "All right you two! Begin!"

"You can do it, Lana!" Mallow shouted.

"Venusaur, use Petal Blizzard." Grace commanded. Venusaur let out a roar while pink petals swirled around its body, firing off towards Primarina with the intent to take it down.

"Primarina, use Icy Wind!" Lana shouted her command. Primarina took a deep breath and exhaled a chilling frost that froze the Petal Blizzard over before it could reach, leaving the water type save from harm. "Now, use Aqua Jet!" Water exploded and surrounded Primarina. It used its speed to close the distance between it and Venusaur, but that seemed to be what Grace wanted!

"Use your vines and stop it!" Venusuar did just that. Multiple vines shot out and wrapped around Primarina, stopping it in its track. "Sludge Bomb!" Venusaur's bulb opened up, releasing a thick glob of sludge that slammed into Primarina, forcing it from Venusaur's grasp. Due to being part fairy that hurt quite a bit!

"Are you okay!?" Lana asked. Primarina took heavy damage but it could still fight. "Sparkling Aria!" Primarina stood up on its tail, letting out a beautiful melody that conjured several bubbles in front of it. These bubbles were then launched towards Venusaur, all of them exploding on contact!

Venusaur slid back from the multiple impacts, but this behemoth of a Pokémon never went down easy. Grace knew it was fine and simply acted once again. "Frenzy Plant!" Roaring, Venusaur stomped on the ground. The sand fluctuated before large vines emerged from all angles, attempting to ensnare and strike the opposition!

"Aqua Jet!" Primarina used Aqua Jet to escape into the sky, against all odds it managed to weave through the Frenzy Plant…most of it. Just before it could make a clean escape, one vine slammed against its body and sent it sprawling into the sand! "Oh no!"

"You're not too shabby! But Venusaur and have a higher winner streak than you might think!" Grace smirked. "Sludge Bomb!" And just like before, Venusaur fired off multiple globs of exploding sludge right at Primarina.

"Surf!" Primarina conjured a tidal wave behind it. This large wave allowed it to hide from the Sludge Bomb while also serving as a potent attack. The wave crashed down on Venusaur since the Pokémon wasn't as mobile as it could have been. But Lana's plan didn't end there! "Now Icy Wind!" While emerging from the water, Primaina exhaled yet again, using Icy Wind to freeze the surf over and damage Venusaur in the process!

"What the?" Grace wasn't expecting such a ploy. Even though Venusaur wasn't the most mobile Pokémon, it was truly stuck as the surrounding water had frozen over around it!

"All right!" This was the opening Lana was looking for! The Primarinium-Z shone brightly within her Z-ring! She was betting it all on this move. "Embraced by our mother, the sea! Echo into the horizon!" After preforming the wave-like motions that the Waterinum-Z usually required, the Z-power overflowed into Primarina for its signature move! _**"OCEANIC OPERETTA!" **_Primarina started to sing, creating a gigantic bubble from its nose; this large bubble was going to crash down on Venusaur and hopefully finish it off!

That was Lana's plan, but Grace didn't intend to let things go down like that. It was a good thing the Alolan sun was strong, because it served as the perfect catalyst for her counter attack. "Solar Beam, full power!" Venusaur had no issues gathering as much sunlight as it possibly could. With the strong sun at its disposal, solar power was hardly a problem. Just as the large bubble came its way, Venusaur tilted its bulb and fired off a gigantic beam of sunlight at the Oceanic Operetta! The two attacks had a fierce power struggle, violently pushing against one another as they vied for dominance. Grace and Lana looked tense as it looked like either attack could overpower the other at any moment. At the end of the day, Solar Beam prevailed, punching a hole through the bubble and popping it instantly. This left Primaina wide open as the Solar Beam struck it directly, passing off into the distance a for a few meters as well.

"Whew…" Marcus whistled. Grace never failed to impress.

Primarina collapsed shortly after that. Venusaur's dominating display at the end turned the tide of battle considerably. "Primarina is unable to battle! That means Grace wins!" Mizuki stated.

"Wow. You're really strong." Lana smiled while patting Primarina on the head. Sandy, her Eevee, came by to nuzzle it as well.

"Hey, you're smart. I wasn't expecting that Icy Wind attack." Grace smile. "You're all pretty good."

"It's not a stretch to say that Ash helped inspire some of us." Mallow said. Things did change with his arrival in Alola.

"But you guys did all the work!" Ash said, proud of how far his Alolan companions have come.

"Hey, hey!" Mizuki interrupted the friendly moment, pouting. "I haven't had the chance to battle yet!"

"Oh, right…!" Ash didn't forget, but he almost got swept up in the nostalgic feeling.

"Everyone's already battled, but I'm sure they don't mind using a second Pokémon." Marcus said. "Who do you wanna fight?"

Without hesitation, Mizuki pointed at Lillie and Snowy. "I want to battle Lillie."

"M-Me?!" Lillie wasn't expecting this in the slightest.

"Mhm." Mizuki nodded. "Ash said I could use one of his Pokémon too, so I picked Rowlet! It feels familiar to me. I think I have one, too." She held up the sleeping owl. A sweat drop appeared on her forehead as she shook it a bit to wake it up. Rowlet did stir before its eyes opened. "So what do you say, Lillie? Can we battle?"

"Well…" Lillie stared down at Snowy. All day this girl had been speaking to her with such familiarity and vying for her attention. She didn't understand why, but she could at least grant her this battle. "Okay. Snowy and I will battle you!" Lillie had confidence in her voice. She may not have been as talented as Ash or the others, but she'd give it her best shot!

"Yay!" Mizuki smiled, although this smile was far brighter than any she'd given over the course of the day so far. "This will be our first battle! I'm so excited!"

First battle. That was technically true, but…the way Moon said it carried a bit more weight than one would expect. Regardless, the best Lillie could do was smile in return. "We'll give it our wall! Watch, Magearna!" And with that, the battle between Lillie and Mizuki was set to begin...

.

.

Next Time: Team Rocket.


	8. Chapter 8: Team Rocket

Lillie and Mizuki stood across from each other on the beach. Lillie didn't believe herself as talented as the others, but she still accepted Mizuki's request to battle. Snowy was up and front, ready to fight! "Are you ready, Snowy?" Lillie asked her Vulpix, and it mewled in confirmation.

As for Mizuki, Ash allowed her to use his Rowlet since she didn't have any Pokémon on hand. "All right, Rowlet! Let's do this!"

"Listen to her like you would me, okay buddy?" Ash told the owl. Rowlet gave a salute in response. It was awake and ready to fight!

This was a strange feeling for Lillie. She hadn't battled anyone on her own outside of her brother, Gladion, and the others in friendly matches. This was the first real battle she'd be having with someone outside of her immediately circle of friends and family. "We're ready to begin when you are, Mizuki."

"Mhm!" Mizuki nodded, staring down at Rowlet. "Ready?" Rowlet nodded and chirped in response. "Okay! Let's begin; Rowlet, use Razor Leaf!" Rowlet took to the skies, flapping its wings once to send a razor sharp blade of grass towards the opposing Alolan Vulpix!

"Snowy, watch out!" Lillie shouted. Snowy was fast enough to avoid the Razor Leaf and that's when Lillie put her plan into motion. "Now, use Hail!" Snowy let out a small howl, causing the clear tropical skies to grow dark with gray clouds. These clouds then began to release Hail, drastically changing the weather!

"AAAH! HOME!" Elizabeth let out a content sigh as the cold weather took over. Everyone else looked at her like she was weird. "What? I've been dying in this sun!"

Mizuki furrowed her brows at the use of Hail. From what she could recall, the hail was going to damage Rowlet a little and that was clear as the owl looked uncomfortable. "Use Seed bomb!" The girl commanded. Rowlet acknowledged the command and spat out an Everstone, using it as a weapon to attack Snowy!

"Aurora Veil!" Was Lillie's next command. This move could only be used in Hail. Florescent lights wavered within the hail as Snowy's defenses were boosted with a Reflect/Light Screen combination, only possible with Aurora Veil! The Seed Bomb hit, but its damage was drastically reduced. Snowy still slid back from the impact, however.

"…Is that an Everstone?" Marcus glanced at Ash.

"Yeah." Ash rubbed the back of his head. "It liked the stone. I couldn't really tell it no."

The downside of Seed Bomb is that if the Everstone didn't come back, Rowlet had to go retrieve it, which it tended to do on its own. As Rowlet fluttered down to swallow the stone again, Lillie saw the opening. "Use Tackle!" Snowy rushed forward, slamming its body into Rowlet to send it flying backwards. "Now, Powder Snow!"

"Can I get some of that?" Elizabeth asked.

"Stop it!" Takeba chided.

As Rowlet flew back from the Tackle, it noticed Snowy exhaling a gust of cold air at it! This would be bad considering Rowlet was extremely weak to ice. "Feather Dance!" Mizuki commanded on a dime. Rowlet complied and just as the Powder Snow hit, Rowlet shed itself! An outline of feathers resembling itself took its place, allowing it to escape the Power Snow with no damage. "Wow, that worked…?" Mizuki was pretty surprised. Ash told her how he used it, but didn't expect it to actually pan out that way. "Now, close in with Brave Bird!" The owl then took to the skies before diving down, a fierce blue fiery aura wrapping around its body as it intended to dive into Snowy!

"Powder Snow once more!" Lillie commanded. Snowy exhaled a fierce cold gust that struck Rowlet. The two were in a stalemate, Rowlet slowly pushing through against the Powder Snow. Eventually the grass type won, slamming into Snowy for a small, contained explosion. Snowy was damaged by the Brave Bird but the damage was cut due to Aurora Veil…which just so happened to run out along with the Hail. "Snowy, are you okay!?" It was bruised, but still standing.

As for Rowlet…one of its wings was frozen from the Powder Snow, causing it to panic! "Ah!" Mizuki gasped. "Rowlet, wait, calm down!"

This was Lillie's chance and she would seize this opening! Her arms crossed and her Z-Ring activated. "Snowy, let's do it!"

"H-Huh…?" Mizuki's eyes widened. "Y-You're using a…!?"

"Snow silently fluttering down from the heavens. Countless glimmering crystals of ice…" As Lillie spoke, she started to move her arms to her sides, soon crossing them in front of her face as she continued the pose needed to activate the Icinium-Z. "O, freezing Z that covers the land…along with my heated soul, return now once more to the heavens!" Cyan light erupted from Lillie's Z crystal and into Snowy. _**"SUBZERO SLAMMER!"**_ Snowy howled as a gigantic pillar of ice formed under it, carrying it several meters into the sky, well over anyone and anything! Snowy then fired off a destructive beam of ice directly at Rowlet! This was her only way of ensuring a decisive finish!

"A Z-Move can turn even that little thing into a monster, huh?" Grace was a little amazed.

As Lillie performed her Z-move, Mizuki was staring in awe. Lillie was…a little different than she remembered, but at the same time, it made a smile cross her lips. In that moment, a flash occurred in her head. An instinct she'd forgotten bubbling to the surface. In an instant, she slapped her Grassinium-Z onto her Z-ring and crossed her arms. Watching Mallow perform it earlier jogged her memory on this specific attack. "We're not holding back either! We'll face you head on with everything we've got!" The Z-power flooded into Rowlet, which managed to break off the ice that froze its wing. "Let's do it, Rowlet! _**BLOOM DOOM!**_" The surrounding area around Rowlet was overcome with beautiful, blooming flowers. Rowlet let out a loud cry of its own, the ensuing explosion of sunlight clashing with the Subzero Slammer! The collision of Two Z-Moves was always an astounding thing to witness. Everyone had to hold their ground until the two attacks ended with a large explosion that overtook everything. As that smoke cleared…both Rowlet and Snowy were down.

"It's a draw!" Marcus called. "Wow…that was a draw."

"Z moves are very powerful indeed." Scott nodded.

"That was a little more intense than I expected. They both did so well!" Kiawe was fired up watching them fight.

"I didn't know Mizuki had it in her!" Lana said with a smile. Seems they ran into quite the skilled battler. "Lillie did amazing too!"

Takeba's eyes were sparkling at the use of all the Z-moves used. "Z-moves are incredible! I really can't wait to try them out for myself!"

"You'd find a way to trip during the poses." Elizabeth retorted.

Mizuki knelt down, picking up the KO'ed Rowlet and smiled softly. "Thanks Rowlet. Sorry if I wasn't able to bring out your best. It's all still fuzzy, but I kind of remembered how to battle." She then approached Ash and handed the injured owl back to its trainer. "Here."

"You were great with Rowlet!" Ash said with a reassuring smile.

Mizuki held her smile and then approached Lillie as she lifted Snowy into her arms. "That was really fun, Lillie."

"Yeah, that was." Lillie returned the smile. "I don't get to battle like that often, but I had fun, Mizuki." She then held her hand out for the other to shake. As Lillie did this, Snowy made way over to Magearna to nuzzle it.

Yeah. Something about Lillie was different than what Mizuki remembered, but at the same time, she didn't mind this. She held her hand out to shake Lillie's. "Next time, I'll win!" As she and Lillie shook hands, Magearna couldn't help but stare at the two of them. What an odd scene, but Lillie seemed happy, so Magearna was too.

"We should probably let our Pokémon rest up, huh?" Marcus said. "They've had fun and worked hard."

"Oh, I know!" Ash had an idea. "We can stay the night at Professor Kukui's again!"

"Yeah, that's a great idea!" Mallow clasped her hands together. It would be a great way to relax and unwind!

"We probably won't be staying over at someone else's house." Grace mentioned. "We've got our own little place to stay, but we will stay for dinner!"

"I think he's going to panic a little at the amount of people this time…" Sophocles said. They sure had a bigger group than usual.

"That's great and all, but uhm…" Mizuki poked her fingers together. "Not only do I not have a place to stay, but I don't have a change of clothes either." She had been parading around with the back of her shirt burned after all.

"…We'll have to fix that." Takeba said.

Before this conversation could continue on, several nets launched out of nowhere! These nets snagged Shaymin, Magearna, and Snowy right from under their trainer's noses. It happened so fast that hardly anyone could see what happened. All they could see was the few Pokémon being snatched away! "Hey, what's going on!?" Elizabeth asked. When they looked up, they all saw a very familiar Meowth shaped air balloon in the sky. "Wh…!?"

"When you ask 'hey, what's going on', the answer is quite clear, and you'll soon find out…" Jessie began.

"Noble answers are what we're all about!" James continued, tossing a blue rose off into the distance.

"Beautiful bamboo that streaks in a flash, along with a fabulous flab, evil from this fleeting forest; Jessie!"

"Still, the nobly heroic man of our times fights back against this cruel and heartless world; it's James!"

"And it's the combat cat ready to back up that glorious fight! It's Meowth!"

"Team Rocket, let's fight!" Jessie and James said in unison.

"That's right!"

"Wobbefett!"

"Team Rocket!" Ash grit his teeth. Just when he thought they were done dealing with them!

"These clowns _again_?!" Elizabeth was not very happy about this!

"Give those Pokémon back!" Lana commanded.

"No way! We nabbed them fair and square!" Jessie stuck her tongue out taunting at the twerps from above. "And you guys used alllll your Z-moves, so you don't have the power to stop us this time!"

"We were waiting for all your fights to be finished so we can scoop them up with no resistance!" James said with a confident smirk. "And now all the real threats are worn out! We might not be able to take everything, but I'm sure HQ will be happy with a Shaymin and Magearna of all things! Everything else is just a bonus!"

"Although we can still use that Pikachu!" Meowth said while aiming some sort of bazooka at the exhausted Pikachu.

"AAHHHHHHHH!" Mizuki screamed and pointed at the talking Meowth. "Is that Meowth talking?! What's going on here?!"

"That's Team Rocket!" Mallow gave the quick rundown. "They're bad people who try to steal Pokémon!"

"Team…Rocket…" Mizuki blinked once, staring real hard at the R symbol. No…this was…fuzzy. She recalled seeing that symbol, but what Jessie and James wore was vaguely different than what she remembered. "A-AHHHHH!" She screamed again, but this time it was due to her head hurting from trying to recall it.

"Mizuki…!?" Lillie rushed over to Mizuki, but kept her gaze on Team Rocket. They had Snowy and Magearna.

"She's having some pain due to her memory-roto!" Rotom said, floating around Mizuki worriedly.

"So they were watching us the whole time!" Marcus grunted.

"We have to get those Pokémon back!" Grace said while calling out Salamance.

"We welcome you to try! But if you attack, you might hurt your friends!" James said smugly. That was enough to make anyone hesitate. They obviously couldn't take the risk of hurting the Pokémon already captured.

Takeba couldn't help but stare at Team Rocket, deep in thought. "You know, this might be a bad time…but I really feel like I've seen these guys recently. Like, earlier today actually."

"Come on, even you can't be that stupid…" Elizabeth rolled her eyes. This really wasn't the time.

"No, I mean it! I swear I saw them…! At least I think so. I dunno, the Malasada lady looks like Jessie but prettier." Takeba shrugged.

"WH!?" Jessie was infuriated by this. How dare she!?

"Now c'mere!" Meowth took aim at Pikachu and fired! A large net shot out towards the electrical mouse specifically and it covered a wide radius.

"Pikachu, get outta there!" Ash shouted. Easier said than done for Pikachu, but it managed to Quick Attack out of the way just in time. Unfortunately due to the size of the net, it ended up hitting Marcus, Grace, and Salamance instead, pinning them down to the sand. "Oh no…!"

"Agh, can't move…!" Grace groaned. Salamance was in an awkward spot and it wasn't able to cut through the net so easily.

"Oh I hate this…!" Marcus had his hand on a Pokeball, but couldn't exactly make use of it in this position.

"Two twerps down!" Meowth took aim again, this time for Scott, Takeba, and Elizabeth. He wasn't aiming for Pikachu at all. He fired once again, this wide net aiming for the both of them.

"Elizabeth, I know what you're thinking and…!" Scott began, trying to give a warning.

"And what makes you think we'll stand here and let that happen!?" Elizabeth scoffed while tossing another pokeball into the air. "Zoroark might be exhausted, but I still have more than one pokemon! Luxray, Thunder!" Out from the Pokeball came Luxray, who fired off an extremely powerful bolt of lightning at the incoming net, which did…absolutely nothing as it covered her, Scott, and Luxray! "What the heck!?"

"Electric-proof." Meowth stated. After all their time hunting Pikachu, they would be prepared for other electric types.

As for Takeba, her clumsiness ended up saving her and she fell backwards, falling into the sand instead of being trapped. "Oof…!"

"There! Now all the threatening ones are gone!" Meowth said.

"Perfect! Mimikyu, it's time to hunt a Pikachu!" Jessie tossed the Luxury ball in the air, and Mimikyu came out. As soon as it heard the word Pikachu, a dark aura flared around the imposter's body.

"YEEESH." Marcus had a cold sweat on his forehead.

"W…What in the world is that thing!?" Even Grace was a little afraid. The ghastly aura of death coming from Mimikyu did not sit well with her.

"It's Mimikyu! Don't look under its cloth!" Rotom warned. "They saw that people who do meet their untimely demise!"

"OH GREAT. SO THIS THING JUST KILLS YOU!?" Elizabeth could not believe this.

Mimikyu didn't even need a command! It dove from the air balloon and lunged right at the wounded Pikachu! Its wooden tail grew larger and it swung with killing intent. The Wood Hammer was narrowly avoided by Pikachu, but the injuries from Dragonite slowed it down considerably. This allowed Mimikyu to close in for another attack. "…!"

And before Mimikyu could, Togedmaru slammed into it with a Zing Zap! This forced Mimikyu backwards, but due to its Disguise ability, it didn't sustain any damage. Sopcholes and Togedmaru, along with Lana and her Eevee, Sandy, were standing in front of Pikachu. "We won't let you!" Both trainers exclaimed in unison. This only enraged Mimikyu. It had no interest in fighting anyone or anything that wasn't a Pikachu, but people that protected a Pikachu? Close enough.

"Kiawe, can you get them down!?" Lillie asked. While she was worried about her Pokémon, there was nothing she could do and attempted to calm Mizuki's mini panic attack down instead.

"Leave it to me!" Kiawe nodded, calling out his Charizard to assist in this dire time. "You're not taking anyone's Pokémon! Charizard, slash the net!" Charizard complied, roaring out before flying towards the hot air balloon.

James was one this one! "Mareanie, use Spike Cannon!" James called out his beloved Mareanie, though before it actually attacked; it first had to show him affection by clamping down on his head with its poisonous spikes, effectively poisoning him to the point where he resembled a Marenie! After that, it hopped off James' arm, firing off a barrage of spikes to keep Charizard at bay!

"Agh, I hate being stuck like this!" Elizabeth shouted. "Hey you! Can't you use your psychic abilities and move this thing! I saw you do it with a Pokeball once!"

"This net is far too dense…" Scott hated to admit that. "But I may be able wiggle my other Darmanitan out…but I am afraid I may not make it in time…"

With Sophocles and Lana distracting Mimikyu, Ash had an idea. Pikachu could still move. "Pikachu, can you use Iron Tail on the net!?" Pikachu nodded, mustering the rest of its strength to sprint ahead. Unfortunately, Mimikyu sensed this movement and slipped past Eevee and Togedemaru, slamming all three of them with a Wood Hammer! This knocked all three pokemon in different directions.

"Pikachu!" Ash gasped.

"Gotcha!" Nothing could stop Meowth's aim! A net was fired and wrapped around the injured Pikachu. Once this was done, it was starting to get reeled in. "Now we got all we came for!"

"We won't let you leave! Charizard, Flamethrower!" Kiawe shouted. Charizard opened its mouth, firing off a blazing stream of fire at the hot air balloon!

"Wobbefett!" Jessie pushed Wobbefett up ahead. It automatically used Mirror Coat, sending the Flamethrower right back at Charizard, who had no choice but to retreat due to that and the Spike Cannon!

"Gh, can't get close!" Kiawe grunted. They were in a tough spot! A few trainers and Pokémon had been knocked down, and what they did have left wasn't enough to break through Team Rocket's formation.

"Let me take care of this." Takeba stepped forward, her pink hair creating a shade over her eyes. There was a serious aura coming from her as she called out her Blastoise, fully fitted with a piece that held its Mega Stone.

"I thought you got netted!" Jessie gasped.

"Do you really think you can come here on our vacation…steal our friend's Pokémon…and get away with it?" As Takeba placed her hand into her top, she started to fish for her Keystone. "I will NOT allow that! I'm going to show you what happens when you mess with a girl on her vacation! And you'll be sure to regret it…! Regret it…regret it…uhm…" Her eyes widened and she continued to look for it, nearly pulling off her top in the process. "Oh…where is it!?"

Marcus' expression fell. "…Don't tell me you left your keystone in Kanto."

"…That appears to be the case." Takeba said with a nervous smile.

"I cannot believe you!" Both Marcus and Elizabeth shouted in unison.

"That's not my fault!" Takeba whined, pointing at her boyfriend accusingly. "YOU distracted me!"

"Huh!?" Marcus' eyes widened. "What did I do!?"

"You know what you did!" Takeba fired back.

"I ASKED IF YOU HAD EVERYTHING!" Marcus shouted.

Were they really doing this now!? Jessie, James, and Meowth could hardly believe this. "Well, that's good! We can't have you Mega Evolving in Alola anyway! That's not this region's gimmick! You can save your lover's quarrel for some other time! Right now, we have a daring escape to make!"

"Give them back!" Left with few options that would actually spare the captured Pokémon from harm, Ash stared to rush towards Team Rocket's balloon. If it wasn't a risk to the Pokémon, he'd use Lycanroc or Incineroar, but from this height, none of them would even reach!

Team Rocket anticipated this. That's why James crossed his arms, his Darkinum-Z activating and resonating with Mareanie! "Team Rocket! Let's finish this!"

"They have one too!?" Elizabeth groaned.

Jessie, James, and Meowth preformed the necessary poses to activate the Z-crystal. The Z-power flooded into Mareanie, who leapt high into the air. "Prepare to fight! _**BLACK HOLE ECLIPSE!**_" The tiny Mareanie created a gigantic black hole that started to draw in everything that wasn't a friend! Mallow, Lillie, and Mizuki had to hold onto the nearest palm trees to avoid being pulled in! The same couldn't be said for the others.

"Gaaaaah!" Takeba held onto Blastoise's shell. "Blastoise, Hydro Pump!"

"Charizard, Flamethrower!" Kiawe shouted.

"Lycanroc, Stone Edge! Incineroar, Fire Blast!" Ash commanded.

All four Pokémon unleashed their attacks to combat the descending Black Hole Eclipse. Had they their own Z-moves to use, this would have been easier to combat with. But Team Rocket had the edge on them in power this time, leading to Black Hole Eclipse nearly overpowering everything thrown at it! The result was an explosion that did not end in the Alola gang's favor. Everyone not holding onto something or tied down was thrown away by the sheer force of it!

"Is everyone okay?!" Mallow asked. The Pokémon were pretty injured while Team Rocket was only getting away!

"We're fine!" Lana said. Sandy was hurt but could fight, but in this instance, it didn't have any attacks that could even reach the air balloon that was floating away.

"And this is where we make our victorious escape! We win this time!" James shouted. While they didn't snag _all_ the Pokémon they wanted, Pikachu, Shaymin, Magearna, and Snowy were enough. Giovanni would be extremely pleased with their efforts!

Jessie returned Mimikyu. "Thanks for the free Pokémon twerps!" And the air balloon started to fly past the trees and towards the ocean! No one knew where Team Rocket was stationed in Alola, so they could escape to wherever they wished and return later.

"They're getting away!" Takeba shouted. She then hurried to the net that had Marcus and Grace tied down, attempting to make quick work of the dense material to free them.

Mizuki shook her head, staring at everyone. If only she had a Pokémon! "Ugh…" But she couldn't stand and do nothing. "Not again…" Again. Had this happened before? It didn't matter. Mizuki did a brazen thing and started chasing the air balloon. "I won't let them take your Pokémon!"

"What is she doing…" Scott mumbled.

"Less mumbling, more squirming!" Elizabeth barked due to the urgency of the situation.

Mizuki climbed one of the palm trees, leaping with surprising athleticism. While she couldn't jump onto the balloon itself, she could grab onto the net holding the Pokémon captive, and she did, thus weighing it down just a little bit. "Stop it right now!"

"Hey, the new twerp is on us!" Meowth shouted.

"What do you think you're doing!?" Jessie called Mimikyu out again. "Be a dear and knock her off before we get too high!"

Mimikyu saw Mizuki as someone who was getting in the way of it taking out Pikachu. So it would gladly charge a Shadow Ball in her face. Now that Mizuki was staring Mimikyu down, she started to sweat. "Now I know what you're thinking. Do I want to blast the girl away? And the answer may surprise you…"

What was, surprising; however, was a bolt of lightning that struck Mimikyu from the side, thus catching everyone off guard. "What was that!?" James glanced in the direction of which the lightning came from, only to see a small Pichu that just arrived on the scene. "A Pichu!?"

"Pichu?" Mizui stared at the Pichu. Wait, no time for that! With Team Rocket distracted, the girl shifted her weight so that the net got caught on a tree branch! This caused the air balloon to halt and made Team Rocket fall over. "There!"

"Mizuki! That's dangerous!" Lillie shouted, rushing over with the others in fear of the worst. She stopped the balloon, but what next?!

"I got this!" Mizuki said. Although she wasn't exactly sure what her next step was.

"You think you can stop us that easily?" Jessie scoffed at this notion. They simply amped up the hot air going into the balloon, making it ascend faster! Of course it had to fight against a sturdy tree which really did not want to let go! The two forces did pull at each other until…the hot air balloon won, ripping itself free from the tree and continued to fly over the ocean. The problem? The net ripped apart, the sudden momentum throwing Mizuki, Pikachu, Snowy, Shaymin, and Magearna wildly into the air! …And they were going to fall headfirst into the water at a dangerous height. "Ah, look what she did!"

"Oh no…!" Ash's eyes widened. That fall looked bad! He knew Pikachu was too exhausted to muster the strength for a move, but he had to try anyway. "Pikachu, use Electro Web!" No good. Pikachu simply couldn't right now.

Mizuki was unfazed. The first thing on her mind was the surrounding Pokémon! Though it was tough, she wrapped her arms around all four of them, barely managing to do so since Magearna was large compared to the rest of them. She'd risk herself to keep them safe! "Don't worry! I won't let you get hurt! You're Lillie's Pokémon…you're my friend's Pokémon…!" The others could only watch in horror as Mizuki was about to hit the water. But just before she could, a streak of lightning appeared from out of the blue, catching Mizuki and company seconds before impact. Tapu Koko grabbed the girl and gently set her down on the beach. "H-Huh…?" Why did she just have the biggest déjà vu moment? "Tapu Koko…?"

"Tapu Koko!?" The others shouted, both surprised and relieved. Without a word, Tapu Koko then left as swiftly as it appeared, but not before leaving something of Mizuki's in her hand.

"Hey, that's just cheating!" Jessie waved her fist angrily. They won! How dare Tapu Koko and this new girl interrupt them like this! "This is robbery!"

"Ironic coming from the thief!" Takeba shouted, freeing Marcus and Grace just in the nick of time. "Finally!"

"Stand back everyone!" Marcus pulled out his keystone while calling out his Gallade simultaneously. The two of them were not very happy with the events that just occurred. "We'll handle this! The brilliant white knight will cut down all evil with its blade of justice! Gallade, respond to my heart and surpass evolution to Mega Evolve!" Marcus pointed his hand forward, a rainbow hue surrounding the Gallade before it became Mega Gallade, letting out an angry growl.

"HEY NO!" James said, pointing at the Gallade. "That's not fair! This isn't what Alola does!"

Marcus ignored them to issue his command. "Gallade, finish this with Psycho Cut!" Gallade complied, swinging its bladed arms forward to slice through the air itself! These kinetic blades struck the air balloon itself, instantly popping it, causing Team Rocket to free fall towards the water.

Grace wasn't going to be so merciful with them either. "Salamance! Fire Blast!" Salamance reared its head back, unleashing a gigantic blast of flame directly towards them to finish them off!

Team Rocket was prepared for the worst, but then…it appeared. Bewear jumped from the horizon, speeding across the water on its legs, nabbing Team Rocket out of harm's way in the nick of time. Stufful was on its back and it waved to everyone as its mother continued to dash away into the distance as quickly as it appeared. "…What even _is_ this feeling?" Team Rocket all said in unison as Bewear carried them away.

"…What the in the blue heck was that?" Elizabeth asked, finally out of the net along with Scott. "Did anyone else see that Bewear run on water?! Is that a thing it does!?"

"That one, yes…" Lana breathed a sigh of relief. They managed to come out on top in the end.

The captured Pokémon immediately rushed to their trainers and were greeted with open arms. Mizuki fell on her back, lying in the sand while staring at the sun. "…That was intense."

"Are you okay?!" Sophocles asked.

"…I think so?" Mizuki sat up. "I don't feel hurt."

"You're just as crazy as he is!" Elizabeth pointed to Ash. "And that's not a good thing!"

"Yeah, you had us all worried!" Mallow placed a hand over her heart.

"Sorry…I didn't think." Mizuki rubbed the back of her head, only to realize her hat had fallen off.

"We noticed that." Scott said. "But you managed to save the Pokémon from Team Rocket. That was no small feat, considering the situation we unintentionally put ourselves in…"

"Thank you so much!" Mallow and Shaymin expressed their gratitude.

"Yeah, thanks a lot!" Ash and Pikachu smiled.

"Mizuki…" Lillie crouched down to be at eye level with Mizuki. "You risked a lot for Snowy and Magearna…that means a lot to me, even though we just met. Thank you."

"Just met? Don't be silly…" Mizuki laughed it off. "Anything for you, Lillie." Her tone held such sincerity that Lillie did not know how to respond after that.

"You look like you have a guest." Kiawe pointed.

"Huh?" Mizuki turned, staring at the wide eyed Pichu that had her hat in its mouth. "Pichu…"

"Pichu!" The small electric mouse nuzzled Mizuki. It was very attached to her.

"Is this Pichu…?" Lana tilted her head.

Mizuki stared at Pichu, and then the item that Tapu Koko left in her hand. It was a Pikachunium-Z, along with a Pokeball! Where did it find these, because she knew these were hers! "This Pichu…I think it's mine…!"

"I knew we'd find a Pokémon of yours soon!" Mallow grinned. A reunion between Pokémon and Trainer, how sweet!

Lillie kept her smile, but deep down, she wasn't sure how to feel. The mystery around Mizuki was only growing. Her reaction to Team Rocket had her the most worried. But there was time for that later. Right now, they finally deserved to rest after such a long day…

.

.

Next Time: A Night Together.


	9. Chapter 9: A Night Together

After their defeat earlier in the day, Team Skull was understandably frustrated. "Ugh! We could've had 'em that time!" Tupp grunted.

"You guys got washed, didn't you?" Said the girl with the heterochromatic gaze. Her red and green eyes stared at Tupp. "I at least got a strong opponent."

"And you lost too, didn't you!?" Zipp shouted.

"I lost to someone strong! So it's not bad!" The girl shouted back. "That girl…" Her mind flashed back to Grace. "Just lookin' at her annoys me! I know I've seen her before, that stupid dude too…!"

"We could've taken whoever you beat!" Rapp shouted.

"Shut up, all of you." Plumeria hated listening to this bickering. "It was our loss. You'll do better next time, K." She said to the blonde.

"Mmm…" The girl known as K rolled her eyes, scratching her cheek. "I won't let that girl get away again…

.

.

What a long day. Finding Mizuki, fighting Team Skull, each other, and then Team Rocket? It was exhausting. But the group could all relax at Professor Kukui's house now and their Pokémon could eat. The food for the humans was still cooking so they had some time to kill. The Pokémon were enjoying Pokémon Food…except Melmetal, who was consuming an entire steel beam. Those who weren't accustomed to the metal behemoth just stared in horror. "What is that thing…" Elizabeth would never get used to these new Pokémon.

"We have to feed it something so it doesn't eat our cooking supplies." Kukui said with a friendly grin. "You're Ash's friends, right? Welcome to Alola!"

"Thanks for having us!" Grace gave a polite smile. "I'm sure you didn't plan to accommodate for this many people tonight…"

"Don't worry about it." Burnet flashed a friendly smile. "Any friend of Ash's is welcome in here. It's nice to have a large group sometimes. I can only hope you enjoy your stay."

"_Such a sweet woman…"_ Grace thought.

Takeba was sulking in the corner. It was utterly embarrassing that she forgot her Keystone in Kanto, thus leading to everyone's Pokémon nearly being stolen. "I'm such an idiot…" She grumbled.

Marcus had his arm around her. All he could really do was comfort her in this moment. "It's all right. Things turned out okay."

"…." Takeba didn't say anything. She was a little too upset at herself for making such a horrid mistake. "At least I couldn't make things any worse." Not exactly the best outlook, but it wasn't the worst either. "Ahhhh…I'm such a mess. How do you deal with me?"

"It's my fault too. I just kind of assumed you had everything…" Marcus said with a sweat drop.

Lana stared at Marcus and Takeba worriedly. "Are they going to be okay?"

"They'll be fine." Scott said with a nod. "Regardless, I think we have some more pressing issues currently on our mind." His gaze turned to Mizuki. Luckily Lillie had some spare clothes Mizuki could make use of until they actually got her something to wear. "This reckless one."

"Yeah, we should figure out what we're going to do tomorrow…" Kiawe stroked his chin in thought.

"Where do we start…?" Ash and Kiawe had similar thought provoking expressions. But they weren't exactly the best people to decide the first step either.

Mizuki was holding up her Pichu, smiling at the little mouse. "Hey, Pichu…do you remember what happened to me?" Pichu frowned and shook its head. It didn't look like it knew. "Aw…that sucks. I guess it can't be that easy…"

Kukui approached Mizuki. "So, you're Mizuki, right?"

"Mhm." Mizuki nodded. "Well, that's the name we're going with now. I don't actually remember my name. Wait, don't I know you?"

Kukui blinked before shaking his head. "Sorry, this is the first time we've met. But you're in good hands! Ash and his friends always see things through to the end, so you have nothing to worry about!"

"That's reassuring!" Mizuki beamed. It still bothered her that she was certain she knew Kukui.

"Please, just don't be so reckless next time." Lillie pleaded.

"I thought my heart was going to burst when you fell from the sky!" Mallow said. She was helping Burnet with the cooking so it could get done a little faster. They did have a big party to accommodate.

How many times could she apologize for that? Not enough. "Sorry…! It won't happen again!"

"Can you look anyone in the eye and say that?" Elizabeth lifted a brow.

"….." Mizuki whistled and glanced away. "No promises?"

Lillie sighed. This girl was a handful and they had only just met today. "Please be more careful, at least? I really appreciate you going all out to save Snowy and Magearna, but I don't want you getting hurt!"

"Ah…" That seemed to set Mizuki straight. "Fine…because you asked…"

Sophocles' stomach rumbled. The food smelled too good but it wasn't ready yet. "Ah…! I'm hungry."

"You and me both." Elizabeth fell to the floor. "I ate before Team Skull attacked and not since..."

Mizuki's stomach gave off the loudest rumble. Everyone stared and she stopped playing with Pichu, an embarrassing blush to cross her cheeks. It was just hitting her now. "I uhm…I don't remember when I last ate."

"What are we going to do with you…" Lillie sighed.

Rotom then flew by. "I have an idea-roto! Let's pass the time by playing a game!"

"What kind of game?" Takeba perked up a bit.

"We'll have to go outside first-roto. Too many people in here." Rotom said.

"If we get attacked a third time, I quit." Elizabeth stated.

.

.

Nothing would happen to the group for the rest of the night. They were all just outside Kukui's house, all of them lined up for the Z-move Roulette. It was basically Simon Says, but the roulette on Rotom's screen determined which Z-move pose they would emulate. "Here we go-roto!" Rotom's roulette began and everyone stood at the ready. "Grass, water, fire!"

"Uhm…!" Takeba had to fumble around a bit. They had to mimic the ending pose of each Z-move. Even though she saw them earlier in the day, memorizing was a different story. She managed fire and water, but as soon as grass hit, she was out. "Ah, I forgot!"

"I can't blame you; I don't know these Z-moves at all…!" Marcus barely managed to slip through this first round.

"It's only going to get faster from here!" Ash said excitedly. He enjoyed this game.

"Gaaaah…!" Mizuki hardly remembered these Z-moves. It was all happening so fast. "I got it!"

"We're still going! Water, water, fire-roto!" Rotom's roulette just kept spinning!

"Water…water…" Grace was trying to remember what Lana had done during their battle. The water was difficult to remember, fire even more so since she only saw it once. Thus she was knocked out only in the second round. "Ugh…I can't do this."

"Fire, Fire, Fire!" Rotom exclaimed.

This one was a little different. For those who weren't aware of the rules, this was the one that killed their run! The native Alolans and Ash aced it; for they had to perform the Z-move in its entirety! As for the others? "Bzzt! Scott, Elizabeth, Marcus, and Mizuki, you're all out!"

"That's not fair!" Elizabeth whined.

"…I should have expected this outcome." Scott sat down. "Why wouldn't we preform the whole move? I'm the fool."

"I'm never using a Z-move." Marcus sighed.

"Ah…I forgot how the fire one went." Mizuki plopped herself on the ground.

"Actually…" Kiawe had a thought. "I'm surprised over your use of Z-moves. Do you remember how you came across all those crystals and your Z-ring?" No one had asked this question just yet. It was a good one to ask.

"Hm…" Mizuki stared at her Z-ring. "In truth, I actually forgot how to use a Z-move. Watching you guys use them helped me remember. And when I fought Lillie, it was kind of an instinct that I remembered. As for where I got my Z-ring, Tapu Koko gave it to me, I think?"

"Huh?" Ash turned to Mizuki. "Tapu Koko?" The irony, since Tapu Koko gave him his Z-ring! He and Mizuki were more alike than he thought.

"Mhm. And I took the Island Challenge. That's the only way to get Z-crystals, right?" Mizuki looked to the others. She wasn't wrong, but there was still something very off about all of this. "Actually…when I look at Kiawe, Lana, Mallow, and Sopchocles…I feel like…we've met too. Even you, Rotom…"

Those five glanced at each other. Just like with Lillie, they couldn't say the same. "We…" Lana began, but they were interrupted by Burnet.

"The food's ready! Munchlax is already eating its own meal so you better hurry up!" The professor's wife exclaimed. If they didn't hurry back inside, Munchlax was going to eat all of their food! That was enough to make everyone rush inside to eat!

.

.

Dinner was delicious. Everyone was content and well fed after such a meal. "That was the best meal I've had here." Elizabeth said, patting her stomach. There were some things good thing in Alola after all!

"I'm so glad you enjoyed." Burnet smiled. Out of everyone, she was the one who ate the most. It caused Grace and Takeba to raise a brow. Something was definitely a little off. "I had to make it a special meal for friends of Ash."

Mizuki noticed it as well. Although her subtlety needed a bit more work. "Hey, are you pr-"

"Thanks for the meal!" Marcus interrupted. "We really enjoyed it."

"Yes. It was a pleasant evening." Scott said, standing up from the table. "We don't want to overstay our welcome now."

"Leaving already? Why not stay the night? We have plenty of room." Kukui reassured them.

"Your offer is greatly appreciated." Takeba held a smile. "But we must decline, for I have my own vacation home just off the beach! You two are joining us, we have plenty of space!" She told Scott and Elizabeth.

"Well…if you insist." Scott shrugged.

"Fine…" Elizabeth wasn't going to bother fighting. She then turned to Grace. "So, are they gonna…" She pointed to Takeba and Marcus.

"Snore? Yes. Loudly." Grace sighed.

"And the first thing we're going to do before we get back is do something about your outfit." Takeba pointed at Elizabeth. "Watching you roam around in these winter clothes is giving _me_ heatstroke!"

"No way!" Elizabeth shook her head. Before she knew it, Takeba started to drag her out of the house as everyone watched. "Let me go! I'd rather die than give up my aesthetic!"

"I'd rather die than watch this fashion trainwreck!" Takeba growled before waving at Kukui and Burnet. "Thanks for having us over! We'll see you around!" With monsterous strength, she pulled Elizabeth out of the house.

"We're so sorry you have to see that." Grace bowed.

"…." Marcus sighed. "Thanks. We'll be seeing you. If you need any help with Mizuki, we'll be around." Without saying much else, he, Grace, and Scott left for the night.

"Your friends are very energetic, aren't they?" Mallow looked to Ash with a smile.

"Yeah." The Alolan champion could only laugh. "It's great to see them again. I know they'll be busy, and we will be too starting tomorrow! We have to help Mizuki get her memory back!"

"Right!" The others agreed.

"And…where does that start?" Mizuki asked.

"We'll walk you around Alola and see if you remember anything." Lana said. "We'll take turns each day and see if it jogs your memory." That was the plan they seemed to come up with.

"I'll be with you first!" Ash said. "We're going to drop by where we first found you, and then we'll go see Hala! If you have the Fighting Z-crystal, then he might know you!"

"Wow, that's actually a decent plan." Mizuki couldn't argue with that. Well, she _could_…it wasn't that she minded being around the others. But her gaze did briefly glance at Lillie. "I don't mind that, I guess."

"Then it's settled!" Kiawe said. "If that doesn't work, then maybe Olivia on Akala Island will know. We have a lot of places to try. Alola is a big place, so your memory is bound to be around here somewhere!"

"And we won't stop until we find it!" Sophocles added reassuringly.

"You can count on us." Mallow and Tsareena held their hands up.

"We'll help you for sure." Lillie smiled at Mizuki.

"And I'll keep track of what we find-roto!" Rotom then took a picture of Mizuki and the others at the dinner table. The flash was blinding so Mizuki recoiled a bit.

Kukui and Burnet laughed. "All right kids. Sounds like you've got a busy few days coming up. Why not get some rest?"

"You can all continue tomorrow." Burnet said. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight!"

.

Everyone was asleep. The girls had the top floor while the guys slept on the bottom floor. Mizuki, however, couldn't sleep. Despite how exhausted she felt, sleep just eluded her. Sighing quietly, she stood up and sneakily began to make her way outside. Pichu noticed and followed behind her, not wishing to be away from its trainer anymore. "We have to be quiet, okay?" She whispered to Pichu before propping it on her shoulder, exiting Kukui's house and avoiding waking anyone.

…Anyone except Lillie, that is. Lillie happened to be awake. In truth she couldn't sleep since today's events were all so jarring to her. But when Mizuki left, she couldn't help but follow. "Where is she going?" Mumbling this, she began to exit as well, and of course Snowy followed.

Mizuki had been wandering the beach for a few minutes, a disappointed look on her face. "Where is it? I thought it was nearby…" She sighed, staring out at the ocean. "Did I remember it wrong?"

"Mizuki, what are you doing out so late?" Lillie asked. "It's dangerous to wander around at night."

"Ah..! Lillie!" Mizuki turned. "S-Sorry, I uh…was looking for something. I couldn't sleep because I was remembering something. At least, I thought I did."

This was news! "What did you remember?" Lillie questioned.

"Well, the Professor's house was familiar, and I remembered that I lived nearby." Mizuki explained. "I thought my house was around here, but I…I can't find anything. I live with my mom and I thought…I could find her…" Mizuki's voice trailed off, her hazel eyes staring at the sand at her feet.

What was Lillie supposed to say to that? Her green eyes widened ever so slightly as she started to see Mizuki for what she truly was: a lost girl away from home. "Oh, Mizuki…I'm sorry. We'll find your memory, I promise." She then sat down on a nearby log, patting the spot next to her.

Mizuki offered a weak smile before sitting down next to Lillie, setting Pichu down so it could play with Snowy. "Honestly, today has been such a rough day. I woke up without any memory of who I am or what happened to me. But I could only remember you, which kept me from totally forgetting everything."

"Mizuki, I…" How was Lillie going to explain this? How could she explain this? "I'm not…"

"And then I almost had a nasty fall again. It reminded me of when we first met." Mizuki continued. "I was new to Alola, and at the time you were taking care of Nebby. You were the first person I met. You asked me to save Nebby from the bridge and I did without a second thought…although the bridge collapsed. If it weren't for Tapu Koko, I'd be dead meat. So I really owe it twice now."

"H-Huh? Nebby?!" Lillie gasped. Mizuki knew Nebby? But…that wasn't right. Out of all the things Mizuki had said, done, or shown, this was by far the most contradictory to her.

"Mhm." Mizuki nodded, staring out into the ocean. "I can't remember all of the details, but I do remember it turning into Lunala. You looked so relieved."

Nebby turned into a Lunala? That wasn't right, because Nebby turned into a Solgaleo! "Mizuki, are you sure…?"

"Positive. I guess I can really say that I can never forget you." The girl turned, flashing Lillie a cheesy smile.

This was only going to get harder. Lillie thought it best to speak now before Mizuki continued to work under the wrong assumption. "Mizuki, listen. I don't think that I'm the person you're looking for. I said earlier that I haven't…"

"Pssh." Mizuki waved a hand. "Don't be silly." She then reached into her pocket, pulling out a picture of…the two of them. "I remember this clearly. I always keep it on me. I'm just really happy it wasn't burned when we were attacked."

"…!" Lillie's eyes widened. That was absolutely her, no mistaking it. In her Z-form outfit no less! Even more so, it was them. "That's…" What did this mean? Two Lillies? Maybe Moon really did come from an Ultra Wormhole, which meant…

"It's us. Before you left for Kanto…" Mizuki stared at the photo fondly. "But I noticed that you've been looking at me differently today…so I've felt a little uneasy, like I did something wrong. You're probably mad that I was weak, huh? Even though I promised to protect you, I…"

"What? No!" Lillie waved her hands. "That's not it at all. It's just…" No. It was too late to try and explain. Lillie shook her head, trying this from a different angle instead. "I'll help you remember who you are, Mizuki. I promise." That was the best way she could go about it. Lillie no longer had the heart to tell the girl she was the wrong person, plus it was clear that Mizuki was denying that possibility as a whole.

Mizuki's smile softened. "Thanks, Lillie. When I get my memory back, can we battle again? The way your eyes lit up…I've never seen that before. I want to see it again."

"H-Huh?" Lillie was taken aback by this comment. "W-Well, sure. I'm not as strong as Ash or the others, but I'd be happy to battle you again, Mizuki."

"I can't wait." Mizuki giggled somewhat. After that, the two of them fell into silence, enjoying the ambiance of the night.

For Lillie, it was pretty awkward. Mizuki seemed like a nice girl, but so many things just didn't make sense. Where did she come from and why was there a picture of them together? "…The moon looks pretty tonight, doesn't it?" This was her attempt at keeping the conversation going.

"….." Mizuki's eyes widened, as if she had a flash of inspiration. "…Say that again?"

"About the moon?" Lillie turned to the other. "I said it looks pretty tonight."

"Moon…?" Mizuki furrowed her brows. "Moon…moon…moon…AH!" She shot up from her seat. "I remembered! That's my name!"

The suddenness of it all had Lillie and Snowy pretty startled. "W-What's your name!?"

"It's Moon!" Moon shouted excited, bringing Lillie in for a sudden hug. "You helped me remember my name! I owe you one!" Not once did it click for her that Lillie suggested Mizuki _because_ she didn't know her name. Not immediately anyway. With everything that had gone on during the course of the day, that fact slipped her mind. "My name's Moon!"

"M-Moon…" Lillie was taken aback at first, but she did return the hug somewhat. She was glad that Moon remembered who she was. "I'm very happy that you remembered your name."

"Thanks to you." Moon pulled back to smile at Lillie. "I can't wait to tell the others tomorrow! Oh, speaking of, will you be with me tomorrow? I feel…a little out of place when I'm not around you…"

"Sorry, Moon…I have to go meet with my mother tomorrow." Lillie said with a slight frown. "But after that, I'll be free. I have a few places in mind I'd like to show you."

"I'll wait for you." Mizuki said. Once again, it was so sudden, so sincere, it took Lillie aback. "It might be good for me to spend time with the others."

This girl…Lillie was going to have to get used to this one way or another. She wasn't bad by any means. Just lost. "We'll all help you, Moon. It's getting late. We should go back and sleep."

Moon wasn't going to object to that. After that talk with Lillie she could relax a bit more. "Yeah, I'm tired…let's go back."

.

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Next Time: Familiar Scenery.


	10. Chapter 10: Familiar Scenery

Moon was a pretty heavy sleeper. So heavy that the others had awoken and left Kukui's house, preparing their respective routes for their days with Moon to help her out. Lillie explained beforehand that she remembered her name and was no longer Mizuki before departing. Right now, Ash, Kukui, and Burnet were simply waiting for the girl to awaken. "She's been asleep for a while." Burnet remarked. "She must've been very exhausted. Being knocked unconscious and falling asleep are far from the same thing."

"Yeah." Kukui tipped his hat up while staring at the second floor. Moon's soft snores could be heard through the house. "Still, she seems like a nice girl. I hope everything is settled with her soon!"

"We'll be trying to help her starting today." Ash said with a nod. "If she wakes up that is. Everyone left an hour ago…"

Moon's Pichu was awake. It overheard the conversation below and started to poke and prod at the sleeping girl's cheek to wake her up, but to no avail. Eventually it got fed up and released a Thunder to shock her awake. "CHUUUUU!"

"GAAAAAAAH!" Moon was awake all right! She sprang up, glancing around frantically as if the end of the world had come. "I'm up! I'm up…!"

That caused the others to laugh a bit. Ash knew exactly how that felt, but these days he had gotten used to Pikachu's wakeup calls. They were becoming less effective day by day. "Morning, Moon!" Ash said with a slight wave from the lower floor. "Ready to hunt for your memories!?"

"Yes…and no." Moon stared down at her attire. It was borrowed clothing. "I'd love to start, but I need new clothes first. My old ones are kinda damaged, you know? I can't go out looking like that…" The girl pouted. "Oh and where are the others?"

"You were sleeping for a long time." Burnet told Moon. "They left to prepare for their time with you."

"Everyone already left an hour ago-roto!" Rotom remarked.

That made sense. "I was out for a while, huh?" Sitting up from the couch, she dropped down to the lower floor and stretched. "Well, before we do anything, I really do need new clothes…"

It was as if Moon summoned a certain someone, because as soon as she said that, the doorbell rang! Kukui went to answer it and it was Takeba, accompanied by Marcus and Elizabeth. "Oh, good morning you two! Here for them?"

"Indeed!" Takeba proudly stepped inside. "My sixth sense went off and I came rushing here as fast as I could!"

"Also dragging us halfway across the town in the process." Elizabeth was still rubbing the sleep out of her eye.

"Someone needs a makeover, don't they? Well don't worry, I know just the place!" The pinkette placed her hands on her hips, staring right at Moon. "So come along, Mizuki!"

"…It's Moon, actually." Moon lifted a finger as Pichu hopped on her shoulder. "But sure!"

"Oh, she got her name back? That's one step closer." Marcus smiled a bit. "Anyway…I hope you can withstand even a small portion of your day shopping with her…" Speaking from experience, he truly did wish the best.

.

.

Lillie returned home and immediately contacted her mother. There was some distress on Lillie's face given the events of the previous night and Lusamine noticed this immediately. "Lillie? What's the matter?"

"Mother…you told me about an Ultra Wormhole that appeared the other night, didn't you?" Lillie asked. Snowy was somewhat concerned and Magearna could easily sense what Lillie was feeling.

Lusamine nodded. "That's right. Did you discover something?"

"I believe so." Lillie took a deep breath. "At the moment it's difficult to prove, but I'm certain that a girl fell from that Ultra Wormhole and obtained amnesia in the process."

"What?!" This was news. Lusamine practically stood up from her seat in shock. "Are you sure!? That's very serious if so!" Not Ultra Beast serious, but a person falling from a different world was an entirely different set of circumstances.

"I'm very sure." Lillie responded. "Her name is Moon. I think she comes from another Alola. She knows about Nebby, has all of the Z-crystals in her possession, and the only thing she remembered when she woke up was me."

Lusamine stared at her daughter with widened eyes. "Another Alola. That's not outside the realm of possibility given Ash's experience. Another Alola with you in it? I wonder what that means. Someone doesn't just slip into an Ultra Wormhole…"

"I know." Lillie took a deep breath. "Right now, she has me confused for the Lillie she knew. I want to tell her the truth, but I can't bring myself to do it yet. That's the only thing she remembers clearly and I…I feel wrong taking that away from her. She's really nice and means well and I really want to help her."

Lusamine held a soft smile. This was clearly tough on Lillie for numerous reasons. "When you have the chance, bring her to the Aether Resort. I'll have Wicke and Faba run some tests and see what we can do from there."

"Thank you, Mother." Lillie returned the smile.

.

.

Takeba dragged Ash, Moon, Elizabeth, and Marcus to the mall! First things first was getting an outfit for Elizabeth so she'd stop dying in this heat. When the bluenette finally stepped out, her choice of clothing was…something else. It was very similar to what a Team Skull grunt would wear and of course that got some looks from her friends and some people passing by. "Why is she dressed like one of those thugs?" Marcus pointed at Elizabeth.

"It was the only thing she was willing to wear." Takeba let out an exasperated sigh.

"What? I told you I'd rather die than drop the aesthetic." Elizabeth folded her arms over her chest.

"It's…better, but now you just look like you're about to steal everything out of my house and home." Takeba pinched the bridge of her nose. "Seriously, who wears all black on a tropical island?!"

"It's this or nothing!" Elizabeth was firm on this.

Rotom started to do some calculations. "There is a 67% chance that she will be mistaken for a Team Skull grunt!" The number 67 appeared on its screen.

"I didn't ask you…!" Elizabeth huffed.

"I think it looks good!" Ash said. "I can tell she's not a Team Skull member, so it should be fine." He and Pikachu both nodded in unison.

"See, at least they get it." At least Elizabeth had someone on her side. "Where's Moon?"

"Still changing." Takeba lifted a finger. "She picked out the clothes all on her own, so I'm a little worried."

"Have a little faith." Marcus patted her shoulder.

A few moments passed and Moon emerged in a new outfit (Ultra version). She was a little apprehensive at first, but her old hat remained and she spun around once. "How do I look?"

"Adorable." Takeba's worries went out the window and she clasped her hands together. "Did you do your hair yourself? Is that why you took so long?"

Moon absentmindedly played with her new braids. "…Yeah. My mom taught me how." Of course thinking about her mom made her a little sad since she couldn't even find her old house.

"It works." Elizabeth said. "So…"

"Don't worry." Takeba already swiped her card, paying for their outfits. "I got you both covered."

Moon's jaw dropped. "She's loaded?!"

"Very." Ash pointed out. "And she's so generous with it, too!"

"She can throw away money for a year and still have too much on her hands." Marcus poked a bit of fun at Takeba as they left the mall. "So, you're gonna visit her original crash site, then that Hala guy, right?"

"Yup!" Ash replied. "It's the best way to start!"

Moon held her hands behind her back, staring at the area. All so familiar to her. "I've been here before…"

"AAH!" Takeba squealed, rushing ahead a bit. Where was her destination? A very familiar food truck. Team Rocket's, actually. "I was hoping I'd see you guys again today!"

"Huh?" James turned around, only to be face to face with Takeba. He immediately panicked and froze. Why did they have to deal with this two days in a row!? There was a long pause as he, Jessie, and Meowth prayed she didn't recognize them. "O-Oh, welcome back…!"

Takeba was digging in her purse. "Those Malasada donuts were delicious. The ones with honey were to die for. Can I have another bag?"

"O-Of course! Coming right up!" Jessie and Meowth worked fast to get rid of Takeba! And just their luck, the others were closing in too.

"And you guys aren't gonna believe this, but there are people who look just like you! I saw them yesterday, but they're more annoying." Shrugging, the heiress placed numerous bills down on the counter, much to Team Rocket's delight. Takeba was practically funding them!

Elizabeth peered over Takeba's shoulder, staring at Jessie and James. "…Huh, you were right. They do look like Team Rocket. I guess there are a lot of people in the world."

Not wishing to deal with this stress any longer, Meowth handed Takeba a bag of honey glazed malasada donuts! "Here ya go! Please enjoy!"

"Eee!" Takeba happily took the bag and skipped off. "Sorry about the delay! Let's go! I wanna ask that Hala guy about the Island Trial!"

"And I'm gonna go back to looking for more clues about Chiper. Good luck you guys." Elizabeth waved a hand and decided to leave for now. As she left, she could feel people staring at her like she was going to join Team Skull or something. Moon was going to ask if it was all right to leave her alone, but it was already too late.

"There is a 50% chance she will be fine on her own-roto." Rotom was making a guestimate.

"All right! First stop, route 1!" Ash pumped a fist into the air.

.

.

Ash and the others returned to the site where they first found Moon. The pile of leaves from her landing was still there. "This is where we found you, Moon. You were unconscious and landed on a pile of leaves."

"It doesn't look like there's much around here." Marcus glanced around. Just trees.

"Do you remember anything?" Takeba asked.

Moon walked around slowly, inspecting each and every tree. "Hmm…" This wandering around lasted a few minutes before she ultimately shook her head. If she was looking for something, she wouldn't be finding it here. "No, I don't remember anything. I was probably out cold when I fell. Sorry…"

"Don't apologize!" Ash kept a positive smile. "There are other places to look. Hala's house isn't too far from here."

Takeba was busy stuffing her face with the malasada donuts the whole time. As they started to walk towards Hala's place, she offered one out to someone. "Want one? Anyone?"

Moon snatched it, taking a bite for herself. "Oh wow! This is really good!" The girl's expression lit up.

"Isn't it? Each bite feels like pure bliss!" Takeba was in heaven. The others just kind of stared at her weirdly. "What? Don't give me that look or I won't share."

As they neared Hala's house, a familiar face dropped by. "Oh, Ash!" Said Hau, one of Ash's rivals. "Good to see you!"

"Oh, hey Hau!" Ash waved.

"Who's this?" Marcus asked.

Hau approached Ash and his friends. They were a bunch of unfamiliar faces, but that didn't stop him from saying hello. "Hello! I'm Hau, grandson of Hala, this island's Kahuna!"

"Hau ya doin'?" Marcus said with a cheesy grin. But this only made Hau's gaze narrow a bit. "…You get that a lot, don't you?"

"You could say that." Hau said.

Awkward first impression. Regardless! "Name's Marcus." The black haired male said after clearing his throat.

"And I'm Takeba Vermillion! Nice to meet you!" Takeba smiled.

"And this is Moon! She's got amnesia, so we're trying to help her out." Ash gestured to Moon, who was staring intently at Hau. "Uh…"

"….." Moon's gaze was hyper focused on Hau. "…Don't I know you?"

"What?" Hau blinked confusedly.

"We've battled before, a lot, haven't we?" Moon questioned.

This made Hau shake his head. "Sorry, but this is the first time we've met. I'd remember battling against you, though."

"I see…" Moon frowned. This wasn't the first time she heard it but prayed it would be the last. "Sorry…"

"If you're looking for Tutu, he's inside." Hau said, motioning for the others to follow him while knocking on the door.

A few seconds passed and the Island Kahuana of Melemele answered. Hala stood in the doorway, giving a smile to Ash and his friends. "Well this is a surprise. What can I do for Alola's first champion and his friends?"

"…Alola's…first champion?" Moon mumbled. "That doesn't sound right…"

"Hi! I'm Takeba Vermillion and I want to know all about the Island Challenge!" Takeba blurted out, but she was then dragged back by Marcus.

"BEFORE that, we have a more pressing issue to deal with." Marcus told the pinkette. "I'm Marcus, less curious about the Island Challenge. Nice to meet ya."

Rotom flew in front of Hala, gesturing to Moon. "We have someone here that wants to speak to you-roto! You may know her."

"Oh? What can I do for you, young one?" Hala questioned.

Moon started to dig in her bag while speaking to Hala. "…Do you know me?"

"Huh?" Hala wasn't sure what she meant. "This is the first time we've met, I believe."

"That can't be right." Moon pouted while pulling out the Fightinium-Z crystal from her bag. "Because I have this. And from what I was told, I have to had beaten you in order to obtain this Z-crystal."

"Huh!?" Hau's eyes went wide in shock. "How do you…!?"

"…How did you…" Hala's eyes actually opened. The reaction from him and Hau did not bode well for the rest of this conversation. Moon and the others felt their stomachs drop.

"…I beat you. That's the only way, right?" Moon asked once again, holding up her Z-ring as well.

"I don't like where this is going…" Takeba gulped.

"While it is true that I give the Fighting Z-crystal to the victor of my Grand Trial, I cannot say that we have met before, young Moon." Hala said. "…This leaves us in a very perplexing situation."

"Are you sure you don't remember, Tutu?" Hau asked. "You do get a lot of challengers!" Unfortunately for Hau, Hala shook his head.

"What does that mean?" Marcus asked.

"There is a discrepancy somewhere!" Rotom said. "Moon has a Fighting Z-Crystal, but she did not fight Hala to obtain it. Perhaps she found it somewhere, then? That doesn't seem impossible. Perhaps the same is the rest for her Z-crystals?"

"The…rest?" Hau glanced at Moon. "How many do you have?"

"All of the normal ones." Moon responded casually. "And I'm sure I got them by completing the Island Challenge."

"…I see." Hala responded. "Perhaps it is as Rotom says, and you procured them, and your Z-ring some other way?"

"No, but…" Moon's expression lowered. She was positive on this…at least, that's how she felt prior to the meeting itself. "Never mind. Thanks for your time. Sorry to bother you!" She flashed a fake smile before heading off.

"Oh, wait…!" Ash and Rotom were right behind her. This left Marcus and Takeba with Hala and Hau, and the atmosphere was a little awkward.

"…I'll ask about that Island Challenge some other time. It was nice meeting you!" Takeba gave a quick bow to Hala before leaving with Marcus. Even she knew when to pick up on a social cue.

.

.

The day came to a close. Moon was temporarily staying at Kukui's house and as such, was given the top floor to sleep. The girl was clearly a little upset after the events of today. She sat upside down on the couch, letting out a huff. Pichu was trying to make her feel better but it wasn't working that well. "My first real day in Alola and it went terribly."

Ash sat next to Moon. Pikachu started to play with Pichu a bit while their trainers talked. "Don't worry about it. Today was just a rough start, but there's plenty of Alola left for you to see."

"I guess…" Moon stared at her Z-Ring. "But today looked really promising and it was a little disheartening that people I thought I knew didn't know me at all. I was unable to remember anything."

"We'll keep trying." Ash flashed her an innocent smile. "I told you that we were going to help you no matter what. You can count on us!"

It was hard to stay down in the dumps with Ash was being so upbeat. "Ah…that's not fair. I want to be in a bad mood." Sighing, she turned to the TV, which was replaying some old Masked Royale's matches. "By the way, I actually had a question for you Ash." Moon sat upright on the couch, peering at Ash. "Are you _sure _you're Alola's Champion?"

That was an extremely weird question. "Yeah!" Ash pointed to the trophy on display. "Truthfully, it still feels surreal to think about. But it's not a moment I can ever forget either. I have everyone to thank for that." Ash smiled down to his other sleeping Pokémon.

Moon backed off a bit, slinking back into her previous position. "Oh. I see. Well, congratulations, first off. Secondly, sorry. I guess I was mixing something up again." That was happening a lot lately. Was she wrong, or were the things around her wrong? It was difficult to tell when she couldn't remember anything.

Ash stood up, stretching and yawning. "It's fine. You're gonna be busy tomorrow, so let's try to get some sleep all right? Good night!" And with Pikachu by his side, Ash took the ladder down to the first floor.

"Night…" Moon sighed once more. She stared up at the ceiling as the lights went out. "…Am I ever going to find out who I am again…?" It was a thought that haunted her throughout the night. But she soon shook it off, deciding to face tomorrow's attempt with a smile instead.

.

.

Next Time: Familiar Scenery, Part 2.


	11. Chapter 11: Familiar Scenery Part 2

Early morning. Grace was having a hard time sleeping, so she decided to take a walk along the shoreline. Since it was so early she didn't wear much but a casual shirt and shorts. The beach was very calm early in the morning and she didn't mind soaking in the sun's rays. "Alola's so nice. I wouldn't mind staying here a bit lon…"

And her train of thought wouldn't last long. For the Team Skull grunt known as K finally caught up to her. "Ah ha! There you are!"

"Huh…?" Grace's blue eyes turned to the sound of the voice, tucking some of her hair behind her ear. Her expression was calm until she saw that girl from the other day. "Ack! You again? What do you want?"

"A rematch!" K exclaimed very angrily. She was not happy about her embarrassment the other day. "You got lucky!"

"Are you serious?" Grace rolled her eyes. But now that she was listening to this girl's voice, it made her freeze for a second. "Are you…?"

"Mad!? Absolutely! I'm Team Skull!" K said, throwing her Pokeball into the air. Once again, her Toxapex was called forth. "We're not leaving until we fight, so you better get ready!"

"I just wanted a nice relaxing morning…" Grace groaned, reaching out for a Pokeball. "I only brought Venusaur and Salamance with me to Alola and Marcus and I are sharing Dragonite custody...What a pain you are. I'll fight you if you tell me what your name is."

Dragonite? K wanted one of those, but it sounded like Grace didn't have it. "No." K shook her head. Let's just say there was a reason she was only referred to by a single letter. "I'll tell you my name when I beat you!"

"I'm not gonna throw just for that!" Grace had a tick mark on her forehead. "Ugh, fine! Whatever! Venusaur, let's make this quick!"

"You're on!" K screamed.

…And the battle was indeed very quick. With Toxapex being unable to poison Venusaur, its options were extremely limited. In the end, Toxapex was defeated once again, leaving K in defeat. Grace returned the bored Venusaur and let out a heavy sigh. "You're a nuisance. Take off that scarf so I can see your face!"

"No!" K refused. It was clear that her face was red from anger even with the lower half of her face obscured. Her red and green gaze burned into Grace's own. "You…why do I keep losing to you!? Gah! I'll be back!" And so, she ran off, leaving Grace stunned and annoyed.

"Wait…!" Grace pleaded, but alas, the Team Skull grunt was already gone. "Ugh, she's gone again…" Venusaur recognized that Grace was feeling down, so it nuzzled her a bit. Even though it was big, it still acted like a small Bulbasaur at times. That was enough to make Grace smile a bit. "Heh…thanks. Next time I won't let her get away.

.

.

Moon's second day in Alola was spent with Lana! Of course Moon did feel a little awkward being around the others, but she was slowly growing accustomed to them. Today, she on the ocean with Lana, the both of them were sharing one of her Ride Lapras. Today's activity was fishing! It was a little different than actively hunting out Moon's memories, but there was nothing wrong in taking a break every now and then. Lana had her line in the water, glancing back at Moon who seemed to be having a little trouble. "Are you sure you remember how to fish?" The small bluenette asked.

"Absolutely!" Moon spoke in grunts, trying to get the fishing line just right. "There! I got it." Grinning, she then tossed the line into the water and waited. "I didn't forget _everything_! Just…most everything." Sigh. It would've been less frustrating if her memory was a complete blank slate. Having fragmented memories really irritated her.

"You'll remember it soon." Lana said reassuringly. Her gaze went down to the water, where Primarina was swimming and Sandy was on its back. The sight made her smile. "It'll come naturally, like fishing." Was that her goal here? It was hard to tell, but she couldn't pass the metaphor up. "You can't force it. If you do, you won't come up with anything."

Moon blinked, her hazel gaze looking to Lana like she was the smartest woman in the world. "Whoa…that was like, really profound! So take my time and let it come naturally, got it! That said…I feel like I am forgetting something really important…" But if she forced it, her head would just hurt again and she didn't feel like dealing with that. "What do you think, Pichu?"

Pichu was busy dipping its tiny tail into the water. It was trying to fish, but since it was so small, it wouldn't be able to grab anything! "Pi…" The small mouse was a little disappointed before turning to Moon. It thought over what was said and simply nodded. "Pichu!"

"Mhm. I'm glad you agree." Moon responded before turning back to Lana. "So, Lana…what Pokémon have you fished up before?"

Lana didn't need time to think about that. "I fish a lot. I've caught a lot of Pokémon, even a Kyorge!"

"WHA!?" Moon's eyes widened. "I feel like I've heard this before. You're pulling my leg." She couldn't believe that!

"It's true." Lana stuck her tongue out playfully. "Lugia too."

"HUUUH!?" Moon nearly flew out of her seat. "NO way…!"

"That's a lie." Lana said. This caused Moon to fall over comically. After the lie of fishing up a Kyorge came true, Lana needed a new lie to tease with.

"Ghhh! I thought you were serious!" Moon huffed while placing herself back in her seat. "You know, though…even though I can't remember much, I know I've seen this view before. It's really pretty, especially during the sunset."

"I think so too." Lana smiled in agreement. "I'm studying in preparation to go on a fishing trip with my father soon. I can't wait."

"Oh really? I'm envious." Moon admitted, staring at her reflection in the water. "It must be nice to have a dream. I had one, I'm sure. But I…"

Before Moon could finish that thought, Lana interrupted her. "Remember, it'll come to you eventually."

"…Yeah." Moon giggled a bit. It was then that she felt a tug on her line. "Oh, I think I got someth-" Before she could finish, she was pulled into the water suddenly. "GAAAAH…!"

"Moon!?" Lana's blue eyes widened in panic. What happened?!

Just Moon's luck. She happened to catch a Sharpedo and had no time to even try reeling it in! All she could do was hold her breath as the shark took her for an unwanted ride. _"Ahh! What am I supposed to do here!?"_ Did she let go? Hold on for dear life? It was hard to decide which. Especially since she was running out of air! Luckily for her this unwanted ride came to an end with Primarina coming to her rescue! Just as Moon lost her grip on the fishing rod, Primarina created a bubble that could safely house the poor girl. "Agh…ugh…"

"Are you okay?" Lana asked with worry.

"I…I think so. That was…an adventure." Moon admitted. "…I lost your fishing rod. Sorry…"

"We have plenty. I'm just glad you're all right."

"I'm…tired and the day is only halfway over." Moon sighed.

Deciding that they did enough fishing for the day, Lana and Moon returned to Lana's home. Upon entering, they were greeted by Lana's mother. "Oh, welcome back you two. Did you have a fun time fishing?"

"It went…swimmingly." Moon laughed at her own pun. Only Lana understood.

"Oh, they're back!" That came from Lana's younger twin sisters: Sarah and Harper. The two girls looked just like their older sister and they crowded the two girls. "We wanted to fish too!" Harper said.

"Yeah, we did!" Sarah whined.

"You didn't miss a lot…" Moon rubbed the back of her neck. But as she spoke, she realized that Pichu had somehow been kidnapped from her shoulder. "Huh?!"

"Waah! Pichu's so cute!" Harper said, tugging at Pichu's left cheek.

"It's a small Pikachu! It's so adorable!" Sarah was pinching Pichu's right cheek. The two girls were assaulting Pichu out of adoration for the small mouse.

"W-Wait…!" Lana waved her hands.

"You two really shouldn't…!" Lana's mother warned.

"I don't think Pichu likes that!" Moon gasped.

Pichu was growing more and more irritated with each passing second. It could only withstand the poking and prodding from Lana's sisters for so long. "CHUUUUU!" Without warning, Pichu released a Thunder that fried everyone in the house! It completely charred everyone and left them sprawled on the ground. Since Pichu was, well, a Pichu, it was unable to properly withstand such a strong electric discharge and ended up taking itself out as well. Everyone in Lana's home was KO'ed. "Chu…"

"That was…shocking…" Moon coughed. The puns would not end even though she was temporarily in pain with everyone else.

.

.

Moon's second day in Alola came to a close. That meant it was time for the third, and where did that lead her? To Mallow's Family Diner! Ash had to accompany Moon to lead her there so she wouldn't get lost. "Did any of this look familiar?" Ash questioned with his hands behind his head.

"Mhm." Moon nodded. "I recognized the roads coming here. Although I haven't seen this building before." The girl stared at the Diner. "Mallow works here?"

"This is her family diner." Ash confirmed, taking the lead to step inside. "Oi, Mallow! We're here!"

As one would expect, the Diner was pretty busy. Mallow was busy running from table to table, handing a number of customers their orders with swiftness. "Oh, hey Ash! Moon!" Mallow gave a quick wave before heading to the back, repeating the process. "Sorry, the lunch rush is tough!" Even Tsareena and Shaymin were doing their best to keep up!

"Should we…do something?" Moon watched Mallow and her Pokémon zoom back and forth. She knew that she was supposed to spend a day with Mallow but this seemed a little much.

"Yeah, let's help her out! I didn't today would be a rush!" Ash was already hurrying into the back to put on an apron!

"Er…" Moon hadn't the slightest clue what was going on. But she did hurry into the back as well. "Okay, I want to help, but considering I can't remember most of my life, I really don't think I can remember what someone wants for lunch." And when she peered around the corner, she saw Pokémon walking into the restaurant too! "…Uhm…?"

"Oh! We serve both people and Pokémon here now." Said Abe, Mallow's father. He was hard at work preparing most of the dishes. "Today's a really busy day!" This was about the first week that the diner was serving people and Pokémon alike, so they had a lot to get used to.

At that time, Scott curiously stepped into the establishment. Color him surprised when he saw the amount of customers in the building. "Hm. This looks like a lot." The male then casually peeked into the back, catching the ongoing discussion with Mallow and the others. "Pardon me, but do you need a bit of help? This looks like a lot."

"Oh, Scott! If you want to help, feel free!" Ash already had several plates in hand and was going out with Pikachu.

"If you'd be so kind!" Mallow smiled.

"I'll take orders then." Taking a nearby notepad and pen, Scott went back out to the busy dining area. He first approached Officer Jenny, twirling his pen around before writing. "You want to try the berry topped Poni radish, is that right?"

"Ah..." Officer Jenny was rather stunned. She didn't even get to say anything but this guy knew what she wanted! "That's right…!"

"Mhm. It'll be out shortly. We are pretty busy as you can see." Scott nodded before glancing at the group of Pokémon that walked in. This would be a little more difficult to take their orders, but he'd try anyway.

Between Abe making the dishes, Mallow and Ash handing them out, and Scott taking orders…Moon felt a little overwhelmed by it all. So much that she just ended up sneaking outside, needing a bit to calm down. While it did look kind of fun to work, she had far too much on her mind to even try anything else. "Ugh…"

Pichu hopped from Moon's shoulder, trying to cheer her up. "Pi…"

"You're fine, Pichu. I just can't do anything right now." Moon sighed, staring up at the clear skies. "They were all just able to help without any hesitation. I want to help, but I can barely remember anything about myself, let alone what someone would want for lunch. I'll just sit out here and wait." In other words, Moon felt left out and alone due to circumstance.

About an hour passed. It was very busy in the Aina Diner. When the lunch rush finally calmed down, Mallow stepped outside and sat next to Moon. "Were you out here this whole time?"

"Mhm." Moon nodded absentmindedly. "I'd just get in the way if I tried to help right now."

"That's not true." Mallow shook her head. She then held out a glass of Pinap Juice. "I know I was supposed to show you around but got sidetracked with work."

Moon glanced at the Pinap Juice. Her hazel eyes sparkled subconsciously. "…Is that Pinap Juice? I love Pinap Juice!" Moon gratefully took the glass and practically chugged it down.

"You've had Pinap Juice before?" Mallow tilted her head. "Oh, you must've run into the Oranguru in the forest then?"

"Huh? I don't remember that." Moon shook her head. "I used to have it all the time. It's m favorite drink."

Mallow wasn't quite sure how to respond to that one. Her diner was really the only place in all Alola that served Pinap Juice. But she decided not to let something so small confuse her. Instead she smiled, pulling out an Oran Berry to give to Pichu, who happily munched on it. "So you remembered that you liked Pinap Juice?"

"Ah…I guess so." Moon shrugged her shoulders. "Lana told me not to rush remembering anything, but when I think about the things I could have forgotten, well…I get anxious. Even something small is helpful, but…"

Of course Lana would say something like that. Mallow was glad to know her best friend's words did leave an impression on Moon. Now it was her turn to be supportive of their new, lost friend. "I know how it feels to lose something. I lost my mother to an illness, you know."

Moon's jaw dropped, turning to Mallow. "Oh, Mallow, I…"

"No, it's okay." Mallow shook her head. "For a while, I felt lost and guilty about the things I had said to her when she was sick and then I lost her. It wasn't until recently when I had a chance to speak to her that I got to settle things properly. I know this doesn't seem related, but your memories are similar, aren't they?"

"I…I guess…" Moon somewhat made the connection. "We both lost something important to us."

"And there's a chance to get it back, even for a moment." Mallow continued. "And it's not healthy to focus on the things you lost…but you should cherish the things you do have. The things you do remember."

"…" Moon wasn't sure what to say to that. Mallow did have a point.

"You have Pichu, don't you?" Mallow said while scratching the electric type's chin.

"Yeah. And Lillie…" Moon nodded slowly.

"The two things that stayed with you even though you lost your memories. That just proves how important they are to you, right?" Mallow's smile widened.

Moon couldn't feel so down with Mallow smiling like that. "Thank you, Mallow. When I remember more things, I want to help out at the Diner for sure!"

"We'd be happy to have you!" The grass type trainer beamed.

.

.

Another day came to a close. Ash and Moon were making their way back to Kukui's house. Ash glanced at Moon's expression. Between the last two days her expression changed noticeably. She had been frowning but now there was a small smile on her face. "Did you remember anything?" Ash asked her.

"I remembered that I liked Pinap Juice." Moon admitted. It wasn't much, but it meant something to her. "Your friends are really nice."

"Don't you mean our friends?" Ash held a cheeky smile. "They're helping because they want to."

"Our friends…?" Moon was briefly taken aback by this. But at the same time it made her small smile widen. "Yeah, you're right. Oh! Hey! Would you mind training with Pichu when we get back? It hasn't had a chance to battle!"

"Of course we'll help out!" Ash and Pikachu both threw a fist into the air.

"Thanks! I feel rusty when it comes to battling…" Moon laughed and rubbed the back of her head. The rest of the walk back was in silence, but Moon happened to glance at the sky once again. Just as she did, she noticed a small crack in it. "…?" And just as quickly as that crack appeared, it vanished. Was she seeing things? Maybe she was just tired. Regardless, she still had a few long days ahead of her.

.

.

Next Time: Familiar Scenery, Part 3


	12. Chapter 12: Familiar Scenery Part 3

Moon was slowly growing accustomed to Alola, or rather, her current situation. The advice from Mallow and Lana did ease her worries somewhat, but the girl was still anxious about everything, understandably so. It helped that she was also getting used to her surroundings, so she wasn't going to need Ash to guide her around the city to hang out with her designated person for the day. For her next day, she was spending it with Sophocles. They were out and about in the streets of Hau-oli city. Moon did feel pretty awkward since she wasn't entirely sur what to say. "I uh…I don't mean to sound repetitive or anything, but I've been down these streets a lot lately."

"Oh, I uh…there was some place I wanted to go first before we got started!" Sophocles said sheepishly. One could hear his stomach rumble and he felt a little embarrassed about it.

"You should've eaten before we got started." Moon held a deadpanned expression before ultimately letting out a sigh. "Oh well. I guess it can't be helped now. If you're hungry, Takeba keeps dragging us to this one food truck…" Moon glanced around the area, only to see that Team Rocket's food truck was not there! "Aw…are they not here today? That's a bummer."

"That's okay! I already know of the perfect place." The young inventor said proudly. Lo and behold…it was just another Malasada shop. It was his favorite place to go eat,, although Moon's expression did pale a bit at the sight of it.

"I know Malasadas are popular, but I feel like that's all people eat around here and the shops are everywhere I turn." The girl said, letting out a groan. "Although I guess it doesn't matter to me. I already ate." Professor Burnet made some very good breakfast before her day out! Without further ado, the two stepped inside. Moon and Pichu were fine, but it seemed as though Sophocles and Togedmaru were starving! While those two waited in line, Moon couldn't help but overhear a conversation.

"Hey, did you hear about that wild Kommo-o lurking around the island?" A tourist female said.

"Wait, really? I thought they were native only to Poni Island?" The female's male companion asked.

"I thought so too. Apparently it's hold up deep in the forest to the north of the city. Some people have tried to catch it, but it really doesn't want to be bothered. I heard it trounced any and all people to tried to challenge it!"

"Wow, sounds scary…"

Moon tilted her head at this conversation. "Huh. Hey, Sophocles, did you hear that? Oh…" Sophocles had quite a tray on him.

"Hear what?" Sophocles asked.

"Apparently there's a Kommo-o around here, even though there shouldn't be." Moon tilted her head. "And I don't think you two should eat all of that."

"A Kommo-o?" Now that was intriguing to Sophocles. A worthy analysis later…after he was done of course. "And it's fine!" And right after he said that, the shop experienced a brief blackout! The lights cut out and the young boy immediately screamed in terror. "GAH!" It was over as quickly as it started. It was just long enough to startle some people.

"Sorry about that! The power tripped for a moment, but everything's all right now!" A worker said.

Moon blinked, staring at the shaken Sophocles. "Are you okay? That was…quite a shout."

Now this was embarrassing. Sophocles didn't expect this to happen today. "I…I have a bit of a fear of the dark." He admitted. His fear ran so deep that he couldn't even sleep without Togedmaru's light.

Moon only smiled softly at this. "That's okay. Everyone has something they're afraid of." She then glanced around before pulling her friend to the side. "To tell the truth, I'm afraid of heights."

"Huh?" Sophocles stared up at Moon, finding this a bit hard to believe. "But the other day you…"

"Jumped onto a hot air balloon to save some Pokémon? Yeah, I did." Moon shook her head. "It was absolutely terrifying to me, especially when I started falling. But when I rushed to save those Pokémon, I thought about them first."

Consider him awed. "Wow. I thought you were fearless the whole time, but you're really brave, Moon." To act even though she was so afraid? It made him feel a little bad about himself.

"You can be that brave too. It's okay to be afraid, everyone has their fears. But if you can act despite being afraid, then that's true courage!" Moon held a confident smile. Funny how she was the one giving advice this time around.

"Pi Pi!" Pichu lifted its tiny hand up into the air, agreeing with its trainers words.

.

.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city, Elizabeth had dragged Marcus along because she was certain she almost made a break in her hunt for Chiper. "Damn it! I knew I saw someone around here somewhere."

"Are you sure you weren't seeing things?" Marcus scratched his head. "You and Grace have both been running around like headless Torchics."

"I know what I saw! That Trudely Guy…! Or Folly, I can't remember who was who." Elizabeth rubbed her temples, rather annoyed at the situation. "Ugh. This is annoying. I know I saw them around here."

"I also know this is a bad time, but you dressed like that probably gives people the impression that I'm not walking out of this back alley." Marcus was right about both, this was not the time but his observation wasn't entirely inaccurate.

Unfortunately Elizabeth had to chalk up this pursuit as a failure. She knew what she saw, but it seemed like the peon of Miror B slipped away from them. "Tch." Without concrete proof, she couldn't exactly report anything either.

"You should take a load off. I know hunting for the remnants of the organization that was a pain in our ass is taking its toll on you." Marcus placed his hands in his pockets. "Takeba wants to go to Akala Island tomorrow…preferably before Moon gets there. Nothing against the girl, but she wants to avoid another potentially awkward scenario if the Kahuna there doesn't know her."

"Right, Moon…" Elizabeth straightened up. "It's weird. I've never seen someone so sure of something only to be wrong."

"That Pokémon…no, er, Ultra Beast, was it? The one that Ash has." Marcus started to walk and Elizabeth followed alongside him. "He said it came from another world, right? So do you think that she did…?"

"Ugh…" Elizabeth groaned again. "This whole other world business is hard to wrap my head around. It's very hard to believe a person can just…come from another world like that."

"It's possible." That's all Marcus could say. Moon was a huge mystery to them.

Just around the corner, Trudely was panting heavily. "That was too close." He didn't think Elizabeth would manage to pick him out from a crowd of people, but he was dead wrong. They almost caught him and his mission would've come to an abrupt end."Gotta tell the boss that the International Police are way onto us…"

.

.

So came the next day for Moon. This time she would be venturing off familiar Melemele Island along with Kiawe, heading to Akala Island! It was bright and early in the morning so the girl was understandably tired while riding upon the back of Kiawe's Charizard, making sure to hold on tight as to not to fall off. She was afraid of heights so she really did not want to fall. "You get up this early every day…?" Moon tiredly questioned.

"Every day for MooMoo milk delivery!" Kiawe exclaimed. The fact the sun was barely up and he had so much energy was baffling to Moon. "I hope being up this early doesn't bother you."

"Not at all…I'm so…invigorated." Moon could barely keep her eyes open. The moment she looked down, however, seemed to wake her right up. "Eep..! S-So…where exactly are you taking me?"

"You want to meet with Olivia, don't you? She'll be busy until later today, but I asked her to make some time for us. Until then, you can relax at my family's farm if you want!" Kiawe explained.

"You have a farm!?" Moon's eyes sparkled. "Forget relaxing, I want to help out!" She didn't want to entirely feel like a burden with everyone helping her out. Moon wanted to return the favor.

"Well, if you want to, we'd be glad for your help!" Kiawe nodded. Charizard also seemed to agree.

Sometime later, the two arrived at Kiawe's family farm, which happened to be Paniola Ranch. Moon took in all the Pokémon present; between Milktanks, Mudbrays, Tauros, and Herdiers, there was no shortage of Pokémon! "Wow…" Moon glanced around in awe. Pichu was out of its ball and also glanced around.

"This is our family ranch!" Kiawe said proudly. Just as they arrived, he noticed his younger sister, Mimo, attempting to carry a moderately sized basket over to the Milktank. "AH! Mimo! That's too heavy for you; let your big brother take care of it!" Kiawe cared for his younger sister a lot. A bit too much at times. It showed on his expression and how he lifted the heavy things for her.

"I can take care of it!" Mimo huffed. Every time she tried to do something, Kiawe ended up doing it for her, but only because he was trying to avoid his sister overexerting herself! One can imagine how taxing that got on her.

Moon blinked, unable to help the small giggle that escaped her. At the same time, watching Kiawe interact with his sister only made Moon miss her mom that much more. _"…I hope you're okay, Mom…"_

While Moon was in her thoughts, Mimo approached and gave a small wave and smile. "Hi! I'm Mimo! You must be my brother's new friend!"

"Oh!" Snapping out of her thoughts, Moon crouched down to eye level with Mimo, giving her own friendly smile. "Hi, Mimo. My name is Moon, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"So you must be my son's new friend." That came from Sima, Kiawe's mother. "It's nice to meet you."

"Thanks for coming by!" Said Rango, Kiawe's father. "We hope you enjoy your stay at Paniola Ranch! This is our pride and joy."

"Paniola Ranch…? Is that what this place is…?" Moon tilted her head curiously. "…I've…been here before?"

The family seemed a little confused at her statement. "Are you all right?" Sima asked. "Oh, that's right…you have some amnesia, don't you?"

"Yeah." Moon frowned. "I can't remember much, but everything in Alola feels so familiar…but no one seems to know me." But instead of sighing, she forced a smile. "Still, thank you for letting me help here!"

"Don't worry dear." Sima held a slight smirk. "We'll ensure that your time here at this ranch is unforgettable."

Moon's fake smile soon turned into a real one after that. "Right, so where can I start!?"

"We'll show you the ropes. Come on!" Mimo excitedly grabbed Moon's hand and dragged her away.

"Wait, Mimo!" Kiawe frantically chased after the two of them.

For the next few hours, Moon assisted Kiawe and his family on the farm. It was busy work, but Moon was enjoying herself. It was a pleasant change of pace from usual, although she couldn't shake the feeling that she'd been here before, even if it was a fleeting sensation. Next on the list was washing the Mudbray. With a sponge and a bucket of water in hand, she approached the small horse from behind. "Okay little guy, let's get you cleaned up…"

Washing Mudbray was second nature to Kiawe. When he glanced to see how Moon was doing, his eyes widened at the poor positioning she took. This was entirely his fault for not warning her before and he knew it. "MOON WAIT! YOU CAN'T APPROACH A MUDBRAY FROM BEHIND!" He screamed as if his own life depended on it! It was a little much but there was no other way to get the message across in time.

"Huh?" Moon had already started when Kiawe screamed. Moon placed the sponge on the Mudbray's back and soon realized her mistake. Mudbray was startled and kicked back on instinct. This led to Moon receiving a hoof to the face that knocked her flat. "Uhhhhh…" She was KO'ed. Swirls were in her eyes and she was down to the count.

"NOOOO!" Kiawe cried out and he rushed to Moon. "Are you okay?! Breathe! Talk if you are!"

"…ow…." Moon groaned in pain. She was alive. Barely. "I'm okay. I think?" Her eyes opened and everything was hazy. "Were there normally 5 of you?"

Yeah, Moon needed to sit down. Kiawe helped Moon onto her feet and brought her inside for her to sit. "That was my fault. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Totally!" Moon was still very dizzy but it was bearable. "I'm fine!" She said, almost falling out of her seat. "…Fine."

A few moments passed and Mimo arrived, holding out a bowl of MooMoo Milk ice cream for Moon. "Here! This is for you! As a thank you for helping us today!" And she had a smaller bowl for Pichu as well. "You too!"

"Aw, thank you!" Moon happily accepted the bowl. She took a spoonful of the ice cream and practically melted! "Oh my goodness. This is incredible." If her time in Alola brought anything good, it was the food for certain. "You weren't kidding when you said the MooMoo milk products were fantastic!"

"It is the pride of our ranch." Kiawe said happily. "When you guys are done, we should be able to speak with Olivia."

Moon nodded and stared at her bowl of ice cream, for she was at a crossroads now. Did she eat is slowly and savor the flavor? Or did she consume it fast, risk brain freeze, all for the sake of enjoying this treat before her? She wasn't sure, which is why she was stuck. "Uh, yeah…gimme a second…"

.

.

Wela Volcano Park. Takeba, Elizabeth, and Marcus got to speak with Akala Island's Kahuna, Olivia. The Kahuna was more than happy to speak to the tourists about the Island Challenge. "The Island Challenge is an Alolan tradition. It is a way for Trainers to obtain Z-crystals and was created to help trainers learn to love and protect the people and Pokémon who inhabit Alola."

"Wow…" Takeba's eyes sparkled. "That's so beautiful. I want to use Z-moves too, actually."

"That's a nice tradition. How does it work, exactly?" Marcus asked.

"Simple. You challenge a Totem Pokémon during their respective trials, and then, you face off against an Island Kahuna for a grand trial." Olivia explained. "Defeating one of us grants you the use of certain Z-crystals that we possess."

"So if I can get a Z-ring…" Takeba started to think. "I definitely want to try taking a trial soon!"

"Are you sure you can complete any type of trial?" Elizabeth crossed her arms.

"Of course I can! I'll show you!" Takeba huffed. "I'll get a Z-ring and show everyone! If Ash and his friends can use those moves, then so can I!"

Now that was a name Olivia didn't think she'd hear from these tourists. "Oh, you know Ash?"

"Yeah, he's a friend of ours. We go back." Elizabeth explained, deciding to opt out the whole Shadow Pokémon affair.

"If you do manage to find a Z-ring during your time here, I'll be the first one to test your ability to wield it." Olivia told Takeba. "Z-Rings are special items here in Alola. As a Kahuna, it's our responsibility to ensure that the people who wield them can use them efficiently."

There was a lot more to this than Takeba ever expected. But her green eyes lit up with anticipation. "Yes ma'am! I'll show you what I can do! I'll beat an Island Trail and use a Z-move, that's my goal while we're here in Alola!"

"And I'm going to make sure you have everything you need this time." Marcus quipped. He still felt a little bad. He knew that Takeba still felt awful about forgetting her Keystone back home, so this was the least he could do to help make it up to her.

"Sorry we're late!" Kiawe and Moon approached the group. "Oh, I didn't know you guys were here!"

"Takeba really wants to take the Island Challenge." Marcus said.

"We would've been here sooner, but I got brain freeze." Moon laughed sheepishly. The others weren't sure what she was talking about. All except Kiawe that is.

"Oh, Kiawe. Is this the girl you wanted me to speak to…" Olivia took a few steps forward and it all went downhill from there. Despite being serious at her duty as a Kahuna, Olivia did have one small flaw: she was incredibly clumsy. It wasn't a rare occurrence either. Olivia tripped, her heel twisting just a bit and she started to flail about in a vain attempt to recover. Alas, she collapsed onto the ground and the others could only watch. "I-I'm okay…!" Olivia said with a nervous smile.

"Oh my gosh! Here, let me help you!" Takeba knew what it was like to be clumsy. So she could only move to reach out and help Olivia up. A mistake, because Takeba ended up tripping on a rock and soon started to flail herself. "Wait nonononono!" And then she collapsed right in front of Olivia, the two of them nervous laughing it all.

"_They're too alike…" _Was the thought of every single person watching this scene.

Olivia managed to stand up, extending a hand to Moon. It was a little difficult to retain her professionalism after everyone witnessed that embarrassing tumble. "Hello, I am Akala Island's Kahuna, Olivia. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Moon shook Olivia's hand. But the way this conversation started reminded her of how her talk with Hala went the other day. That dreadful feeling in her stomach grew but she played it off for now. "…I'm Moon. Do you recognize me? I've taken the Island Challenge before."

Olivia shook her head. "I'm terribly sorry, but this is the first time we've met."

Marcus and Takeba glanced at each other. This was an exact repeat of the other day! "Uh…she's got amnesia! She's been having a hard time remembering things lately." Takeba hastily said. "But there are some things that don't quite…"

"No, it's okay." Moon shook her head. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Olivia." To avoid another awkward scenario, Moon was just…grinning and bearing it. It was clear that she wasn't going to get any answers here either, but she didn't want to waste Olivia's time either. "I've taken the Island Challenge before, at least I think so. I just wanted to verify what I was thinking by speaking to you."

Kiawe wasn't sure what to make of this situation. He heard from Ash that Hala didn't recognize Moon despite her claims and it looked like the same was true for Olivia. "…"

"You've taken the Island Challenge? You must be a tough trainer then." Olivia held a smile. Still, she was getting an odd vibe from this girl.

Moon held up her Rockinium-Z. "I have this to prove it. That I've beaten you before."

"…!" Olivia's eyes widened. As she said, this was the first time they've met, so… "That's…"

That reaction was all Moon needed to know. "You don't need to say anything. Thanks for your time, Olivia." Without saying anything else, Moon departed rather quickly. The frustration of feeling like she didn't belong was only growing with every encounter she had so far. Her sudden departure left the others stunned and at a loss for words.

Olivia, however, kept calm, watching as Moon departed. "That girl…" Needless to say, there was a lot more to Moon than meets the eye.

.

.

Back on Melemele, Trudely was in the forest, speaking to Miror B over the phone. "Yes, we've got it all set up boss. We'll be releasing the first Shadow Pokémon on Melemele here tomorrow! But we should be careful, I think the IP is onto us. Who cares? Man, boss…you're fearless. Okay, but we got it! The test run will tell us everything we need to know! Watch out Alola, the dark days are coming!"

.

.

Next Time: Moon and Lillie.


	13. Chapter 13: Moon and Lillie

Today was the day. Lillie couldn't afford to put this off any longer. She had to spend time with Moon today. The only reason Lillie had been waiting so long was to hear Moon's experiences throughout the week from the others; by doing this she would be able to gauge how true this 'other world' theory was when it came to Moon. Based on what the others had been telling her, it seemed that her theory was all but true. Today would be the day that decided it all in Lillie's mind. Right now, she was standing in front of her mansion, a limo awaiting her departure for Kukui's house. "I feel bad for doing this, but I just needed to make sure." She then crouched down in front of Magearna.

"…?" Magearna tilted its head slowly.

"My brother will be here soon to keep an eye on you. Snowy and I will be back soon, okay?" Lillie told Magearna. The emotional machine understood and gave a nod in response. "Thank you. Are you ready, Snowy?"

"Vul!" Snowy let out a small cry, hopping into the limo before Lillie.

"I think I'm ready too…" Lillie wasn't sure. The question she asked was more for herself than Snowy. It was understandable why she was so nervous. Moon had been clinging to her during their time together. After all Lillie learned about her from their talk the other night, she couldn't bring herself to take away the only thing that Moon remembered. Lillie took a seat inside the limo and closed the door. "Okay Homs, I'm ready."

"Alright, Miss Lillie. We will be there soon." The butler said before the limo started to drive off. "If I may ask, what is your plan for this young Moon lady?"

"I want to take her to the Aether Foundation to see Mother. There we'll be able to find out once and for all where Moon comes from and how we can help her." Lillie explained. "It's the best thing I can do for her right now. I really want to help her."

"You're very kind." Homs remarked. Even he knew how much of a toll Moon's presence caused Lillie some stress, but she was willing to deal with it to help the girl.

"It's…odd." Lillie stared out the window. "She knows me – or rather, another me very well from the sounds of it. I…or, er, she was the only thing that Moon could remember when she woke up. I feel like I should do what I can to help. I know that the other Lillie would want to do that more than anything." How did she know? It was a gut feeling.

.

.

Moon spent her morning training with Ash outside on the beach. Pichu was dueling against Lycanroc, for Moon needed to remember her experience facing off against other types, plus it was clear that Pichu needed the training. Right now they were taking a break and Moon fed Pichu and Oran Berry. "Good work, Pichu. You've really been coming along these last few days."

"Pichu's getting real strong!" Ash knelt down to pat Lycanroc. In response the rock type nuzzled into him; unfortunately for Ash that meant its sharp rock spines dug into his skin. It was a little painful, but he would grin and bear this show of affection. "Ahaha, you were great, too, Lycanroc."

"Pichu has had a 70% improvement since training began-roto!" Rotom said after compiling its data.

"This week has been a long one." Moon admitted while looking out into the ocean. "The others have been trying real hard to help me regain my memories. They helped me remember some small stuff, but my head hurts when it comes to anything else." It made her sad and frustrated. Her progress over the last few days was extremely minimal. "But it's okay. I'm just glad I have you guys looking out for me."

"That's what friends are for." Ash responded with his usual grin. Right after he said that, he noticed a familiar limo rolling up on the path before Kukui's house. "Oh! It looks like Lille's here!"

"Lillie…!" Moon sprang up from her location and immediately started to rush over to the limo. Pichu was on her shoulder so there was no need to worry about it failing to keep up.

"Good luck, you two!" Ash waved from afar as Moon went off to go with Lillie. Hopefully when they returned, Moon would have something new to go off of.

Lillie stepped out the limo with Snowy in her arms as usually. By the time Moon reached her, she was a little winded. "H-Hey Lillie…" Moon panted softly, giving Lillie a bright smile. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever, even though it's been a few days."

Lillie did smile at Moon. "Sorry if I made you wait too long. I wanted to take you to the Aether Paradise today."

"Oh! Wait! Before we do that." Moon interjected. "There were some places I wanted to take you first."

"H-Huh?" Lillie was taken aback by the sudden request. "You want to take _me_ somewhere?"

"Mhm. Since today's going to be us, I wanted to revisit the places we've been on Melemele." Moon explained her reasoning. "I figured that it might help me remember somethings. I've forgotten so much, that I'm…afraid of what would happen to me if I forgot you, too." The toll of the past few days was really starting to get to her. Lillie was the only one she felt like she could vent to. Mallow told her to hold onto the things she could remember, and now she was doing so out of fear she'd forget them, too.

"Oh, Moon…" Lillie frowned. Clearly these last few days had an effect on Moon. It was difficult for Lillie to deny such a request as well. "Okay. Aether Paradise can wait. Where do you want to go?"

"Back to where we first met." Moon's lips curved into a slight smile. "I can't remember anything. But I remember us…"

Of course things wouldn't be that easy for Lillie. It was a little foolish of her to think it would be, but now wasn't the time to think like that. Instead she wanted to focus her efforts on helping Moon. "Homs, Moon and I will be walking. I'll contact you when it's time to head to Aether."

"Very well." Homs understood and drove off, leaving Moon and Lillie alone together.

With that done, Lillie turned to Moon. "So, where to first, Moon? I'll be following you, and if you can't remember where to go and lose your way, I'll be there to bring back."

For the second time since waking in Alola, Moon felt at ease. It was only around Lillie. The others were nice and Moon knew they meant well, but Moon couldn't entirely relax around them. "Thanks, Lillie…"

.

.

Moon and Lillie's day together started on the Mahalo Trail. Moon held her arms behind her back, taking in the scenery in silence. After a few moments she finally decided to speak. "Hey…do you mind if I talk about the things I do remember? You're most of it, but I remember some other things as well."

"Not at all." Lillie responded with a gentle smile. "I'll listen."

"Thanks." Moon's lips curved up into a slight smile. "I'm not sure if I've told you this or not, but I'll just start from the beginning. I came from Kanto originally. Mom wanted to move to Alola and I wasn't on board with the idea at first. Truthfully, I hated it when I came here."

"Really?" Lillie was a little surprised to hear this.

"Well, yeah. I was moving away from everything I knew." Moon continued. "Granted, I didn't have much back in Kanto either, especially after my dad…" Shaking her head, she trailed off.

"Your dad…?" Lillie almost stopped walking. With the way Moon spoke, Lillie could already feel a faint connection with Moon.

"I…I forgot." Moon immediately said. She didn't forget, but she was using her current amnesia as a means to escape topics she didn't want to talk about. Even Lillie wasn't so privy to all of Moon's emotions. "A-Anyway…I was pretty lonely growing up. I remembered that because I kind of feel the same way now as I did back then."

"…Moon…" Lillie frowned.

"So when I first came to Alola, I didn't want to be there. But I think the Professor offered to give me a Pokémon when I arrived." Moon continued on with her story. "But, before I could even meet him…" Moon came to a halt in front of the bridge leading to the sacred ruins. "I met you. Right here."

"Right here…" Lillie's head glanced around.

"Yeah. You were in trouble. Nebby had gotten out of the bag and was being attacked by Spearow on the bridge." Moon explained while approaching the bridge. "You asked for my help. I wasn't sure what was going on, but I decided to help anyway. I did what I could to shield Nebby, but then it broke the bridge and we started to fall. That's when Tapu Koko saved us!"

Lillie was somewhat taken aback, only because the events that Moon explained were identical to what happened with Team Rocket the other day, just as she said before. It also made Lillie nervous because it sounded like Moon had a problem with falling from high places for her sake. "I know I said this the other night, but you really should be more careful."

"I know." Moon sighed and turned to face Lille once more. "I can't make any promises, though."

Sweat drop. "You're a little stressful to be around when you say things like that." Lillie said and Snowy agreed.

"You've…said that before." Moon giggled a bit. "You say that a lot, actually."

"I did…?" Lillie blinked. It must have been the other Lillie that Moon was referring to. Were they really so similar?

"C'mon, there's another place I wanna go to." Moon grabbed Lillie's free hand and off they were!

.

.

Where did Moon take Lillie to next? Melemele Meadow, since it was close by. It was there that Moon continued the story of what she could remember. The two of them sat near the flowers, while Snowy and Pichu happily jumped about with one another. "After we met, we got along really well. You were always there, cheering me on when I took on my Island Challenge. Your support meant the world to me."

"I'm glad to hear that." Lillie responded. It wasn't exactly a lie, hearing how another version of herself supported someone. "Say, Moon…when did you start remembering things?"

"The things I told you earlier? Well…" Moon scratched the back of her head. "I got kicked in the head by a Mudbray the other day, and it kinda rattled my brain enough to remember some things."

Lillie wasn't sure what to be more freaked out about; the fact Moon got kicked in the head, or how casually she said it! "K-Kicked in the head!? Are you okay!?"

"Psssh, totally fine." Moon waved a hand casually. "The headache wore off later that day. Besides it's not the worst thing I've been hit by."

Lillie's face paled. What was up with this girl!? "Do I want to know what the worst thing you've been hit by is…?"

To that question, Moon glanced away and started to whistle. "…I don't remember." Was her excuse again. But Lillie wasn't going to fall for it this time. If there was one thing Lillie was learning about Moon, is was that she was a terrible liar.

"I can see through you." Lillie responded while puffing her cheeks out.

"I know." Moon dropped the act. "But truthfully, I can only remember taking some fire type attack to the back. It's probably what knocked me out cold."

"Does it still hurt?" Lillie's inquiry was filled with genuine concern. "It was pretty bad from what I saw."

"A little." Moon admitted, bringing her knees closer to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. Her hazel gaze stayed directed at the flowers. "But it's okay. I can't remember exactly what was happening, but I know whatever attack was coming was aimed for you."

"You can't keep putting yourself in danger for me!" Lillie blurted out. The more Moon talked, the more she grew a little frustrated that she kept throwing herself in harm's way. This was true during the Team Rocket incident, and seemed to be true even before that.

Despite being yelled at, Moon smiled. "…I know." She repeated, but she was happy about it.

"Huh? Why are you smiling?" Lillie's expression changed.

"Because you yelling at me just shows how far you've come along." Moon giggled once more. "You were pretty quiet when we first met. Now here you are, yelling at me for my actions. You've changed and I can always see it in your eyes."

"Ah…" Now Lillie was speechless. She knew that Moon was referring to the other Lillie, but that didn't mean it still didn't apply to her.

Moon looked around for a moment before spotting something. "Ah, there it is." Reaching out, she picked a yellow flower and handed it to Lillie. "Here. You said you liked this flower once before right? I almost forgot until we sat down."

"I do like this flower…" Lillie nodded slowly. The blonde was starting to realize how Moon was mistaking her for the Lillie she knew. As Lillie was learning, her counterpart was practically identical to her in almost every way! No wonder Moon had them mixed up so easily.

Moon and Lillie sat in silence for a few moments. Even though Moon was as relaxed as she could be, even she felt a little awkward about something. About what, she wouldn't say. "You wanted to go to Aether, right? I'm ready to go now."

"Huh? Oh, yes." Lillie said. "I think my Mother can help you."

"You mother? So that means Lusamine is okay now?" Moon's voice rose.

"Okay? She's been…" Lillie started.

"After the incident in Ultra Space, she was in bad shape." Moon started to remember somethings. "And that's when you decided to leave Alola to try and help her. And you…almost left without saying goodbye...and even when you came back, you didn't…"

That was a lot to unpack in such a short time. The incident Mono was vaguely describing sounded a lot like the time Lusamine fused with a Nihilego. But there was a bigger issue present in the fact that it looked like Moon was about to cry. Lillie was now starting to see where she and the other Lillie diverged. "N-No, wait. Moon, that wasn't…!"

This riveting conversation was going to be put on hold, because now of all times, an Ultra Wormhole opened up directly above them. "Huh!?" Moon stared up at the hole that suddenly opened in the sky. "What is that…?!"

"An Ultra Wormhole!?" Lillie stood up immediately. "But why now…" Before she could finish, she could hear a roaring blast traveling through the hole. "MOON LOOK OUT!" Lillie exclaimed while diving forward, tackling Moon out of the way suddenly. Her call was right, for a Hyper Beam utterly obliterated the surrounding area. All of the surrounding Pokémon happily minding their business immediately fled the scene. "A-Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah…" Moon sat up. Pichu and Snowy hurried to their trainer's sides. "W-What the heck was that?!"

As the smoke cleared, two figures were seen standing where the destruction once was. They were wearing masks so their faces couldn't be seen, but there was one trait that stood out among the rest; the rainbow R that was plastered onto their outfits. Alongside these two strangers were a Rhydon and a Nidoking. But the most frightening observation that could be made was the Z-ring wrapped snugly across the taller one's wrist."Well, so _this _is where you ran off to! Looks just like home, doesn't it?"

"About time we finally found you. Thought you were lost forever." The other one said. Based on their voices, the first one was a male and the second was female.

"W-Who…" Moon started to back up out of fear, but that's when Lillie and Snowy stood in front of her protectively.

"Who are you!?" Lillie demanded to know.

"Wow, get a load of this. I guess history does repeat itself." The woman chuckled before placing her hands on her hips. "It doesn't matter who we are to you. But we've come with a very specific goal in mind." The woman pointed directly at Moon. "We are going to get back what you stole from us, Moon."

.

.

Next Time: Ultra Encounter.


	14. Chapter 14: Ultra Encounter

Moon and Lillie were under attack by two mysterious assailants that emerged from an Ultra Wormhole! They had a Nidoking and Rhydon at their sides, two extremely strong Pokémon that would give Snowy and Pichu an uphill battle. Lillie and Snowy stood in front of Moon protectively, refusing to hand her over to the people who appeared. "I don't know what Moon stole from you, but I know she had a good reason." Considering they were attacked right out the gate, Lillie didn't even need to ask any question. She had faith that Moon acted for good reason, even if the girl herself couldn't remember.

"Lillie…" Moon held a slight smile before turning to the two assailants. That rainbow R on their chest was so familiar; it was making her head hurt. But right now they had to focus on getting out of this situation before anything else. "Okay Pichu, let's…!" And then she realized the problem: two ground types. Pichu wasn't going to be of much use! This was bad.

"Ahaha!" The woman of the opposing pair laughed. The mask on her face concealed her identity. "Lucky us! We'll make this rather quick then."

"Agreed." The masked male responded with a nod. "Rhydon! Stone Edge!" Rhydon let out a roar before punching the ground. This caused sharp azure stones to pop out, rapidly trailing towards Pichu and Snowy.

"Looks like we don't have a choice! Pichu, use Thunder!" Pichu jumped into the air, letting out an extremely strong discharge of lightning towards the incoming Stone Edge! Thanks to training with Ash and Pikachu, Pichu was capable of withstanding the drawback it usually suffered from a strong electric type attack! The Thunder clashed with the Stone Edge, causing the stones to break apart.

"Snowy, Powder Snow!" Lillie exclaimed. Snowy exhaled a frigid gust of air that froze over the broken stones.

"Now, Iron Tail!" Moon followed up immediately. Pichu used its falling momentum to its advantage, swinging its tiny tail. That small tail contained a lot of power, smacking the broken stones back at Rhydon and Nidoking to deal out some damage. "Nice!"

Lillie was a little surprised how in sync the two of them were. Still, this was no time to be in awe, they were still in danger. "We have to get to the others!"

"Oh, but we're just getting started! Where's that good old Alolan Hospitality!?" The woman smirked menacingly while pointing her arm forward. "Nidoking, Earth Power!" Nidoking roared, causing the Melemele Meadow. The ground trembled before breaking apart under Pichu and Snowy. There was a sudden eruption that threw both Pokémon into the air and they landed harshly.

"Pichu!" Moon gasped.

"Snowy!?" Lillie shouted. The two were fine, but that Earth Power hurt.

"Rhydon, use Mega Horn!" The male exclaimed. Rhydon's horn shone brightly and it stampeded forward, intending to take out Snowy right then and there!

"Powder Snow on the ground!" Lillie order. It was the best thing she could think to do in the situation. Snowy released another Power Snow on the ruined earth, turning it into slippery ice. This caused Rhydon to lose its footing and its forward charge was absolutely ruined. "Now, Tackle!" Charging forward, Snowy slammed its body into Rhydon, managing to knock it back just a little bit. But then…

"Poison Jab!" Nidoking came forward! Just as Snowy knocked Rhydon back, Nidoking came in and slammed its poison infused fist into the Vulpix's stomach, knocking it back onto the ground violently.

"Snowy!" Lillie cried out.

"Hey!" Moon growled. On that cue, Pichu jumped forward, swinging its tiny tail across Nidoking's face to send it stumbling backwards. "Lillie, is Snowy okay!?"

Snowy did struggle to get up, but it eventually managed to stand. "Yes. We're not frail." Lillie told the two mysterious trainers. Unfortunately for Moon and Lillie, the pace of this battle was completely out of their control, which was not good. "But this…"

"I know it's not good…" Moon had a sweat drop on her forehead. Feeling cornered, her hand clenched into a fist as she tried to think of a way out. If they tried to make a break for it, they wouldn't get away that easily.

"If you return what you stole, maybe we'll let you off easy." The woman said.

"I know not to trust you…" Moon responded with a sneer. She didn't even know what she had that they wanted!

Lillie had one last idea. It was a gambit but she had to go for it. "Snowy! Let's do it!" Arms crossed, her Z-ring started to shine as she prepared to unleash her Z-move!

"As if we're gonna let you do that! Rhydon, Hyper Beam!" Rhydon's mouth opened and it unleashed a gigantic blast right for Moon and Lillie! As Snowy and Pichu were now, they weren't going to be able to defend against such an attack that easily outclassed them. All Moon and Lillie could do was stare in horror as that blast came right for them…

"Stone Edge! Air Slash!" Those two attacks came out of nowhere, intercepting the Hyper Beam. The attack exploded prematurely, saving the two girls from harm.

"Huh?" Moon blinked and sighed in relief. "What was that?!"

"Who dares!?" The two attacking trainers yelled angrily in unison.

As the smoke cleared, the savior of the two girls was revealed: Gladion, his Midnight Lycanroc, and Sivally! "I should be asking that question." Gladion said. It was clear on his expression that he was not pleased about the scene he ran into.

"Gladion!" Lillie's expression had relief all over it.

"You're…" Moon mumbled.

"W-What are you doing here!?" Lillie didn't think anyone would find them here.

"I was back home when Mother told me an Ultra Wormhole was opening up here. Not only that, but Silvally was getting anxious and rushed over here before I could even stop it. And what did we find when we arrived? Two people attacking my sister and her friend." Gladion kept his gaze on the two assailants. "You two need to leave. Now. We'll handle this."

"O-Okay! Let's go Moon!" Lillie picked up Snowy with one arm, grabbed Moon's hand with the other, and they started to leave!

"Okay…!" Moon wasn't going to objection. She scooped up Pichu onto her shoulder and ran off with Lillie.

"Like we'll just let you leave!" The male shouted. "Rhydon, Mega Horn!"

"Nidoking, Poison Jab!"

"Lycanroc, Counter! Silvally, Crush Claw!" Gladion shouted immediately. Lycanroc rushed forward, only to serve as a blockade to the Rhydon that attempted to attack Lillie. A fierce red glow appeared around Lycanroc as it held its ground against the Mega Horn, only to retaliate with double the power, knocking Rhydon back! As for Silvally it easily evaded the Poison Jab, firing back with a powerful Crush Claw that threw Nidoking back.

"What the heck is this!?" The male grit his teeth.

"What Pokémon even is that!?" The female pointed at Silvally in shock.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but you're in the wrong world. So you better return home before I send you packing myself." Gladion placed his hand over his face, taking one of his signature poses while staring his two new foes down. If they weren't going to back to where they came, then he'd gladly give them the boot.

The male's lips then curved into a smirk. "Oh well. This one distraction doesn't matter. We've got more on the way…"

.

.

Prior to Moon and Lillie being attacked in Melemele Meadow, Ash and his Alola friends all gathered at the Pokémon School. It had been a while since they all spent some time together and it was a nice chance to catch up on the events that took place over the last few days. "So," Ash began, "What do you guys think about Moon? I think she's cool!"

"She doesn't seem like a bad person. Not at all." Lana could agree with Ash's statement. "She just seems very lost."

"I can't blame her. The poor girl lost most of her memories." Mallow frowned. "I wish there was more we could do to help her. She's a very nice girl."

"There's also what Lillie told us." Kiawe crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. "That there's a chance she might be from another Alola. When she said that, it was the only thing I could think of that made sense."

"Did the talk with Olivia not go well?" Sophocles asked.

To that, Kiawe shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. Moon recognized Olivia and all, but it didn't look like Olivia knew her."

"The same thing happened with Hau and Hala the other day. She knew them, but they didn't know her at all." Ash commented. The idea of another Alola wasn't so far off, especially to him. After all, he was flung to a desolate Alola that was partially ruined by the power of a single Guzzlord. In a sense, if it were true, he knew how Moon was feeling.

"I hope her time with Lillie helps recover her memories." Lana said. "But I hope Lillie can handle being around Moon, too. She has been a little clingy towards her."

"It might be because her memories are mixed up-roto." Rotom quipped.

"They were going to Aether today, right?" Kiawe asked. "Maybe that'll help some things."

"Actually," Ash began. "I think she and Lillie went walking somewhere else. I couldn't really hear, but it looked like they were doing something else for the day."

"Huh. I wonder what they're doing…" Sophocles asked aloud. As it stood, no one had any answers. But the conversation they were having would be put on hold, for Komala was banging the school bell violently. It wasn't just any chime, but this chime was a signal to these specific students. "Huh!?"

"That bell chime!" Lana stood up from her seat.

It was at that moment that Professor Kukui came charging into the classroom, panting softly from the sprint he had to take to get there. "There's trouble, everyone! We're going to need the Ultra Guardians one last time!" He then pressed a button, causing the nearby bookshelf to move, revealing it for the elevator to the lower levels.

"Lille's not here. We'll have to do this without her!" Kiawe said. The others agreed and rushed to the elevator, taking it to the lower level of the Pokémon School, which acted as the HQ for their roles as the Ultra Guardians. During the ride down, the five students suited up into their outfits and rushed into the room.

Clefable, their helper, was panicking while the communication screen came on. On the other end was Lusamine, Wicke, and Faba. "I'm sorry to bother you like this, but there has been a grave emergency on Melemele!" Lusamine said.

"What's the problem!?" Mallow asked.

"Multiple Ultra Wormholes have been opening all across the island. The readings are going crazy!" Wicke said as it was displayed on another screen. The map of Melemele had Ultra Wormholes opening up in several locations across the island. "We don't know what's going on!"

"Strangely enough, there are not Ultra Beasts dropping from these Wormholes, but it appears to be people." Faba said while adjusting his glasses. "I have no choice but to consider this as an attack from another world. As much as I would absolutely enjoy figuring out the reasoning behind such an invasion, I'm afraid the Branch Chief won't allow it."

Darn right Wicke wouldn't allow it! "We have one more issue!" Wicke said.

"It's about Lillie…" Lusamine was clearly worried sick. But the screen switched once again to display the current events happening at Melemele Meadow. Moon and Lillie were under attack by a mysterious group of people! Luckily Gladion arrived on the scene, but it was clear that Moon and Lillie needed a safe extraction and Gladion needed backup. "You must go help them at once and then deal with the others!"

"Right!" The Ultra Guardians understood their mission. Without wasting any time, they all went to their Ride Pokémon to head out to the mission; Ash with Garchomp, Kiawe with Charizard, Lana and Dragonair, Mallow and Flygon, and lastly, Sophocles with Metang. There was an Altaria that belonged to Lillie, but since she wasn't present, it was on its own. Still, the area under the pond in the Pokémon School opened up, serving as a runway for the Ultra Gaurdians to depart. They all took to the skies, and only seconds after they did, they were attacked as well.

"Huh?!" Mallow gasped as Flygon narrowly evaded a Dark Pulse that came in from out of nowhere. "What's going on!?"

Just like how Moon and Lillie were ambushed by masked men and women! They were all on various flying types; Mandibuzz, Braviary, Noivern, Tropius, you name it. Ash noticed the rainbow R immediately and narrowed his eyes. "Team Rocket!?" Something about this Team Rocket was…different. It wasn't just Jessie and James attacking for their usual antics. Whenever an outside faction of Team Rocket got involved, that always spelled serious trouble.

"Well, you're not wrong." A masked member of Team Rocket said. "So they're in this world, too? That's convenient. He'd love to hear this."

"We don't have time to deal with you!" Kiawe shouted.

"So get out of our way!" Lana yelled alongside Kiawe.

"That's too bad! We can't have you interrupting our mission! We don't have a lot of time to do this and this will be our only shot for who knows how long." Another member of Team Rocket said, holding up their wrist to reveal a Z-ring. "So we're going to have to keep you busy for as long as possible…or simply get rid of you. Either or."

.

.

Off on the beach of Melemele, Takeba stared up at the holes in the sky, eyes wide at this unnatural event. "Uhhhhh, guys…?" The heiress pointed up at the sky. "…Is that supposed to happen?"

"What in the…!?" Elizabeth stared at the sky. "What is this!?" It reminded her of that one thing she caught a glimpse of the other night. Was that really the same thing?

"The hell is going on?" Marcus could only stare, unable to make heads or tails of this.

"We can worry about what it is later!" Grace barked, snapping everyone's attention back to the matter at hand. "We've got trouble and have to deal with it!"

"She is correct." Scott let out an annoyed grunt. "There are multiple events happening at once. We cannot fix everything at the same time, but we must do our part. Let us start with those people who fell from the sky!"

.

.

Moon and Lillie were a fair distance away from Melemele Meadow, but still not quite back at Hau'oli City. "We really have to thank Gladion. I don't know what we would've done to escape had he not arrived." Lillie admitted. This was yet another time she wished she were as strong as the others.

"Yeah, we were lucky…." Moon sighed, resting against a tree. Pichu and Snowy were injured, but she did have a few Oran Berries in her bag for them to munch on. "I don't feel right leaving them back there. But I know I wouldn't be of much use…"

"I feel the same way." Lillie and Moon could agree on the same point. They both felt weak and they didn't enjoy the feeling.

"I'm really sorry." Moon ended up frowning. "I didn't know this would happen! If I did I would've gone straight to Aether with you!"

"It's okay, Moon." Lille gave Moon a reassuring smile. "We'll be fi…" From around the trees, a Drapion was slowly wandering in a daze. This caught Lillie's attention as this Pokémon was not in its natural habitat. "Huh…?"

"What's wrong?" Moon turned to the Drapion. "Oh, it looks lost?" She wanted to approach it, but something was telling her not to. That didn't stop the Drapion from turning due to the sound of their voices. "Ah, it saw us…are you okay?"

The Drapion's eyes were blazing red. These two girls couldn't see it, but there was a strong aura of darkness emanating from this Pokémon. It saw two targets and locked in on them. The Drapion let out a roar before releasing a Pin Missile in the girls' direction.

Shadow Pokémon had been reborn.

.

.

Next Time: Shadow Encounter


	15. Chapter 15: Shadow Encounter

From bad to worse, Moon and Lillie found themselves in another situation. After escaping the members of Team Rocket, they had the misfortune of encountering a Drapion. But this Drapion was not any normal one; this was a Shadow Drapion. The two girls had no way of knowing this, but they were aware that this Pokémon was far from normal. It was extremely aggressive, attacking the two girls the instant it saw them! "RAAAAH!" The Drapion roared, firing off a Pin Missile at the two of them. The needles fanned out in all directions, exploding in darkness in various locations, but somehow, they initially missed Moon and Lillie.

"Aaahhh!" Moon and Lillie both screamed as they ducked for cover. How they escaped that unharmed, they had no idea.

"W-What's happening!?" Moon asked, understandably frightened with all the events that occurred within a short time span.

"I-I don't know…" Lillie responded. But it looked like they weren't going to entirely escape this Drapion without a fight. At the same time Lillie was also wondering where Ash and the others were at a time like this. _"I have to protect Moon…"_ Lillie thought to herself. When she glanced at Snowy, the two of them had the same thought.

"I don't think we can get out of this without a fight…" Moon said, glancing at Pichu. _"I won't fail to protect you this time, Lillie. I promise…" _She and Pichu had the same thoughts. "Pichu, use Quick Attack!" Pichu sprinted forward, moving in a zig-zag motion to keep its movements from becoming too predictable. It then slammed its body into Drapion's face, rebounding after the impact while the orge scorpion staggered back. "And Thunder!" Pichu then fired off a gigantic bolt of lightning that struck Drapion directly, causing it to roar out in pain from the direct hit. "Nice work Pichu!"

As one would expect, Drapion was not very pleased by this. Its rage was only fueled and it exhaled a blast of darkness, moving its head in a sweeping motion. Moon, Pichu, Lillie, and Snowy all had to go out of their way to avoid it. A line of explosions occurred that forced nearby wild Pokémon to flee.

"Snowy, Powder Snow!" Lillie hastily shouted. Snowy jumped forward, breathing out a cold gust of wind that started to freeze Drapion over. Its legs were frozen to the ground and it was struggling to escape. Lillie was very glad Gladion arrived when he did, because it spared her the use of her Z-move, which she intended to use now! ""O freezing Z that covers the land, along with my heated soul, return once more to the heavens! _**SUBZERO SLAMMER!" **_Lillie preformed the pose necessary for the Z-power to resonate with Snowy. Snowy let out a howl as a pillar of ice appeared under its feet, lifting it high into the sky. Snowy gathered a large amountof ice within its mouth before firing off a gargantuan beam that struck Drapion, freezing over into a large glacier before it exploded.

Moon stared at Lillie in awe. The look on Lille's face was one she hadn't seen before. _"Maybe she doesn't need me…" _ "That was incredible…"

But it was naïve to believe that would be enough. A stinger shot from the smoke, striking Snowy directly in a fit of rage. It all happened so quickly, all Moon and Lillie could do was stare in horror as Snowy slammed into a tree, KO'ed from the vicious impact. "Snowy…!" Lillie gasped, hurrying over to her beloved Pokémon. "Are you okay?!"

"That wasn't enough!?" Moon was shocked. How strong was this thing!? "We don't have a choice. Pichu, use Volt Tackle!" Pichu nodded, gathering a large amount of electricity around its body as it dashed forward. A fierce yellow glow wrapped around Pichu's body as it slammed into Drapion at full force, causing a small explosion. Drapion was sent staggering back, while Pichu landed and suffered a great deal of recoil due to barely being able to handle such a discharge, along with Volt Tackle naturally damaging the user.

"Snowy…" Lillie had no choice but to return Snowy to its pokeball.

Drapion emerged from the smoke, still angry and in a rampage. It was going to attack again, but Volt Tackle just so happened to paralyze it! "Oh thank goodness that worked! Lillie, we have to move!" Moon grabbed Pichu and Lille's hand, sprinting off. Where? Anywhere was better than this Shadow Pokémon that was still intent on chasing them down. That was until a Kommo-o stood in its way, roaring out. "Huh…!?" Moon turned her eyes wide at the situation that was unfolding. "That Kommo-o…?!" Was that the one the people were talking about!? Actually, was that...hers!?" As much as she wanted to find out, she had to get Lillie to safety.

"KOMMMO!" The Kommo-o and Drapion clashed, their raw power creating a shockwave that nearly knocked several trees over. Whatever this Kommo-o was doing, it was blocking Drapion's path, but only for so long. This dragon was in for a painful lesson as to why Shadow Pokémon were so dangerous.

.

.

A battle in the sky was happening over Melemele. The Ultra Guardians were locked against the mysterious members of Team Rocket in the sky. "We need you to move!" Kiawe exclaimed as Charizard evaded a Dark Pulse from a Mandibuzz, having it fire back with a Flamethrower, which was ultimately avoided as well.

"Our friends are in trouble!" Lana shouted as Dragonair's sleek body allowed it to dodge most of the incoming attacks. The Dragonair then attacked with a vicious Twister, but the other flying types managed to avoid it before it caught them. "We can't afford to stay here!"

"Altaria, go to Lillie and Moon! We'll cover you!" Mallow told Altaria. "Flygon, fend them off with Dragon Breath!" Flygon did as asked, unleashing a widespread Dragon Breath to make room for Altaria to fly past. If the Ultra Guardians couldn't get to their friends in time, then Altaria should have been able to!

"Like we'd allow it! Boomburst!" The Team Rocket member riding Noivern intercepted Altaria with a powerful Boomburst. The explosion of sound shot Altaria out of the sky, causing it to freefall towards the ground.

"Tropius, take it out with Solar Beam!" Another Team Rocket member shouted. With the bright sun of Alola being a plentiful source of energy, the flying plant was able to gather enough sunlight within mere seconds, turning all of that power into a large blast.

That's when Sophocles acted, tossing a pokeball out into the air. "Vikavolt, Zap Cannon!" Vikavolt was fast as always. It was able to fire off a Zap Cannon to intercept the Solar Beam, saving Altaria from harm.

"Crush Claw!" The rider of the Braviary shouted. It happened so fast. Braviary lunged forward, its claw violently slashing at Vikavolt to knock it out of the sky.

"Vikavolt!" Sophocles worriedly shouted. The Metang he was riding had to quickly maneuver out of the way to avoid crashing into anything.

"Rowlet, use Seed Bomb!" Ash tossed Rowlet's Pokeball out. The usually sleeping owl was bright and awake for this, spewing out its Everstone to crash into Braivary and knock it down. The Everstone rebounded off Braivary's body and Rowley happily caught it. That didn't exactly save them from the situation they were in. They were completely surrounded on all sides.

"We have to break through somehow…" Lana said. It was at that moment that they noticed the numerous explosions occurring down below. "Ah!"

"Ah, looks like we've found her." A Rocket Grunt said. Little did they know that it was an entirely separate incident occurring. An incident of a Shadow Drapion hunting two girls and clashing with a powerful Kommo-o in the process.

"Found who!?" Kiawe asked.

"That girl, Moon. She stole something very important to us and we need it as soon as possible. Traversing worlds without it is extremely difficult and we don't have a lot of time. So be good little boys and girls and stay out of our way!" Another grunt said. It was then that the surrounding Pokémon started to flap their wings, creating a pseudo Hurricane to trap the Ultra Guardians within.

"T-They are after Moon…!" Mallow had to shield her eyes from the wind. As it stood now, they had no chance of getting out of this.

"We have to hurry!" Ash was looking for a way out, but it was unlikely in their current predicament.

"You're out of time!" Said the Grunt riding atop Braviary. His arms crossed and his Z-ring shone brightly.

"W-What the!?" Kiawe's eyes widened. "A Z-Ring!? But how!?"

"Fear the crumbling earth as it crushes you! _**WORLD'S END FALL!"**_ Braviary let out a loud cry as rocks started to congregate above, turning into a gigantic mass of earth that threatened to crush the Ultra Guardians. In their current position, they were unable to escape this falling mass that would surely take them all out! There were too many questions, but so little time as the Continental Crush rapidly neared them.

"Brace for impact!" Ash yelled. Just as the rock mass came down, an orange ball collided into it, exploding it from within as multiple meteors rained down! "Huh!? Draco Meteor!?"

"What the?!" The Continental Crush was destroyed!? The falling meteors were also a threat, so the Team Rocket Grunts had to break their formation to avoid being hit.

"Sorry for being late, it was a mess down there." Marcus said as he appeared riding Dragonite. Grace and Elizabeth were sharing Salamance, Takeba had Honchkrow, and Scott had his Swanna. "But don't worry; we'll take care of them."

"We cleaned up the streets. We don't making taking the skies next." Grace said with a slight smirk.

"Seriously, what's going on!?" Elizabeth asked before turning her head to Ash and his friends. "…And what's with the weird outfits?"

"That doesn't matter now." Scott said. "We have some more trash to clean up."

"Mhm! You guys go ahead!" Takeba gave the Ultra Guardians a salute. "We'll take care of this!"

"Thanks guys!" Ash was so glad that they were here. "Let's go!" Without wasting anymore time, the Ultra Guardians flew off to save their friends!

"I don't think so!" The grunt riding Noivern commanded for a Boomburst, but it was intercepted by a Dragon Pulse from Dragonite. "Guh!?"

"Didn't you hear me?" Marcus said while giving a slight smirk. "I said you'll be dealing with us now."

.

.

Meanwhile, Gladion was fending off the two Team Rocket grunts that initially attacked Moon and Lillie. While his main goal was to buy time for the girls to escape, he also intended to crush these two where they stood. "Swords Dance!" This was a command for both Lycanroc and Silvally. Blades appeared around the two of them, clashing together before a red glow appeared round their bodies, signifying the sharp rise of their Attack.

"Think that matters!?" The female Team Rocket grunt scoffed at such a play. "Nidoking, use Sludge Bomb!" Nidoking let out a roar while firing off a potent bomb of toxins right at Silvally and Lycanroc.

"Silvally, Air Slash!" Gladion commanded. The beast slayer whipped its head forward, releasing several sharp blades of wind that sliced through the Sludge Bomb before it even became a threat. "Lycanroc, Outrage!" Lycanroc let out a feral howl, a vicious red aura flaring around its body as its eyes burned a crimson red. It then moved so fast it appeared as a streak of red light, gunning right for Rhydon!

"Rhydon, Outrage!" The male Team Rocket grunt smirked. A similar red glow appeared around Rhydon and it charged to meet Lycanroc in the middle. The two of them clashed and Outrage turned into a fierce slug fest. Lycanroc and Rhydon were throwing vicious punches at each other and each hit was a strong impact. The two of them were moving rather fast, causing small shockwaves to boom out from each collision.

"Don't forget us, brat!" The female grunt laughed. Gladion was i 1, meaning his attention was divided, while the two grunts could focus solely on him. "Nidoking, Earth Power!"

"I didn't." Gladion responded. "Silvally, Crush Claw!" Just as the ground exploded underneath Silvally, it leapt into the air, a bright red glow appearing on its claw. Silvally dove down, slashing into Nidoking's chest for a heavy hit.

"Guh! You're so annoying! Poison Jab!" Nidoking growled and swung a poison infused fist at Silvally's chest, scoring a direct hit. It was strong enough to send the beast slayer backwards.

As for Rhydon and Lycanroc, their slug fest was brutal but came to an end with Lycanroc was the first one to reach confusion. This left it extremely open and the male Team Rocket grunt grinned at his victory. "Looks like Lycanroc couldn't last! Finish it off!" Rhydon roared and raised its arm overhead, crushing Lycanroc with its strength! At least that's what it looked like, but Lycanroc was actually using one arm to fend off Rhydon's, while its other arm was firmly between its own sharp teeth. "Huh!?"

Just as Gladion wanted things to work out. He knew the shortcomings of Outrage and worked around it by having Lycanroc bite its own arm with no restraint. The sharp pain allowed it to snap out of confusion. "Counter!" Lycanroc's body shone bright red and it returned the damage it took from Rhydon two fold in the form of a solid punch! The punch had enough power it knock it into Nidoking and knock them both over. "Stone Edge!" Lycanroc howled, slamming its fist into the ground. This caused multiple azure stones to rise up and slam into the opposing Pokémon, further sending them back!

"Ghhh!" The female grunt was so annoyed! How could this trainer be so strong to handle two of them!? "I've had enough of you!" She crossed her arms, displaying that Z-ring on her wrist.

"What!?" Gladion's eyes widened. He didn't notice they had a Z-ring in the heat the battle.

"Nidoking! Let's drown this brat in toxins!" The female grunt exclaimed while beginning to pose. This was a shock to Gladion for many reasons. "Goodbye, kid! _**ACID DOWNPOUR!**_" Nidoking's body let out a large wave of purple toxins. This wave rose into the sky before it came crashing down, intending to sweep Lycanroc and Silvally away within this deadly purple see. "We don't have time to deal with you!"

This was a bad situation, but not an impossible one. Gladion quickly reached in his pocket, tossing a silver disc to Silvally just before the Acid Downpour came crashing down. Lycanroc was durable enough to barely withstand such a powerful attack, but what of Silvally? Did his disc made it in time?

"Looks like we got him." The male chuckled.

That's what it looked like. But when the smoke cleared, Silvally and Lycanroc were still standing. Silvally's appearance changed; its quills and eyes were gray. This was Silvally-Steel! By sliding the Steel Memory into Silvally's memory core at the last second, it was rendered completely immune to the Acid Downpour. "The corrosive acid of the invader will never melt through this knight's armor of pure steel." Gladion said calmly.

"W-What the heck!?" The female's eyes widened. Lycanroc just tanked the blow, while Sivally was completely unharmed. What was up with this kid and his Pokémon!?"

"I've wasted enough time here. Silvally, Multi-Attack!" Silvally lunged forward, gunning straight for Rhydon. Multi-Attacked changed types depending on Silvally's own, meaning it was a Steel type attack! Silvally viciously clawed Rhydon's face, knocking the beast over into a KO'ed state.

"W-What…!?" The male grunt gasped in shock. How could this be!?

"Lycanroc." Gladion spread his arms apart, causing his Z-ring to glow. The Z-crystal in place was the Dragonium-Z. This wasn't completely necessary since the battle was in his favor, but he wanted to make a point about what would happen to anyone who would dare attack his family. "Your punishment for attacking my sister…will be the dragon's full fury!" His arms were held apart as though a dragon's maw were opening. The Z-power flooded into Lycanroc, who brought its arms back before throwing them forward. _**"ULTIMATE DRAGON BURN!" **_Devastating Drake. Lycanroc released energy that took the shape of a gigantic wyrm that soared around the skies before homing in on its target: Nidoking. The dragon exploded onto Nidoking, the dome-like radius of the explosion nearly overtaking Melemeadow itself. Needless to say, Gladion won this bout.

"Damn, this kid…!" The female was taken aback. "I don't remember this trainer being around…!"

"I know…!" The male responded. The two grunts were flashing in and out of existence shortly after their defeat. "…We're out of time…maybe the others can finish this…" And with that, the two grunts were gone and Gladion could only presume they returned from where they came from.

"The others…?" Gladion lifted a brow. But there was no time to think on that as multiple explosions shook the earth. "What!?" He returned Lycanroc, then hopped on Silvally's back. "Lillie might still be in trouble, let's go!"

.

.

Even with Kommo-buying them time, it lasted only so long. Shadow Drapion was a menace; a wounded, violent war machine that was plowing through everything in its path. Moon was concerned with what happened to Kommo-o, and even more so about her and Lillie's wellbeing.

"Lillie, stay behind me!" Moon said while turning around along with Pichu. Since Snowy was down it was up to Moon to fight. "Pichu, Iron Tail!" Hopping from Moon's shoulder, Pichu assaulted the paralyzed Drapion with its tail, striking several times in order to fend it off! Drapion had taken a lot of damage at this point, but what the two girls didn't realize is that its anger pushed it into Hyper Mode. All Drapion saw was red and it swung its tail at Pichu violently.

"Pi…!" Pichu cried out, tumbling along the ground before landing on all forces, one eye shut tight as it tried to endure its pain.

"…" Moon was silent as the situation seemed grim. _"I have to try it. I don't know if Pichu is up for it, but we have to do something! I can't…I won't let Lillie get hurt…!" _ Moon's resolve was made up and she crossed her arms. "Pichu! We have to do this!"

"Moon…" Lillie stared at Moon. She could see that the girl was trying to keep a brave face, despite how cornered they were. It was admirable and did make Lillie feel a little better in the situation.

"Pi…!" Pichu stood up and nodded.

Moon started to pose, the Electricium-Z resonating with Pichu. "We're not going to let you take one step further! We'll stop you here!" Moon crossed her arms in a Z formation, allowing all of that Z-power to flood into Pichu. "Here we go! _**GIGAVOLT HAVOC!**_" Pichu drew its arm back, the Z-power turning into a singular spear of lightning that it punched forward, soaring through the air to fly towards Drapion. It didn't look like Drapion had a defense for this in its rage induced state, but it also wouldn't need one, for the Gigavolt Havoc…fizzled out before contact. "AH…!?"

"W-What…!?" Lillie's eyes widened. If she was shocked, imagine the horror that Moon felt.

Drapion didn't register this. Instead it opened its mouth, unleashing another blast of Shadow Power that struck Pichu directly. The following explosion caught Moon and Lille, throwing them back across the ground. Pichu was down and the girls were hurt after that blast. "L-Lillie, Pichu, I…" Moon tried to stand up, but the scorpion was already towering over them. Its two stingers firmly grasped Moon and Lillie, holding them in place as it prepared to squeeze the life out of them…..

Until Pikachu dropped down from the skies, slamming an Iron Tail onto Drapion's skull. The sudden impact was strong enough to force Moon and Lillie to be released and they fell to the ground. "We made it!" Ash said with a sigh of relief. Just as Garchomp touched down, so did the others.

Mallow hurried over to Moon and Lillie. "Oh my gosh, are you two okay?!"

"Y-Yeah, we're fine…" Lillie managed to smile. "I'm so glad you guys made it."

"Look out!" Lana pointed to Drapion, who, in its rage, released a Shadow Pin Missile.

"A Shadow Pokémon!?" Ash was not expecting to see one here, but his plan remained the same. "Pikachu, Electro Web!" Pikachu jumped forward, flinging its tail forward to create an electrical web that blocked the Pin Missile before it could hurt anyone.

"A what Pokémon!?" That flew over Kiawe's head.

"Now, Iron Tail!" Ash would answer that question later. Right now, this Pokémon needed to be finished off. One glance and Alola's champion could tell that Drapion was only active due to its blind rage. One solid hit would do the job! Pikachu sprinted forward, keeping its body low before swinging its tail at Drapion's legs! The Iron Tail sweep knocked Drapion in the air and Pikachu slid under its body. "Finish it with Thunderbolt!" Pikachu let out a strong bolt of lightning from its body, shocking the Drapion into incapacitation. Despite all its rage, Drapion finally succumbed to the damage inflicted by Moon, Lillie, the Kommo-o from before, and now Ash and Pikachu.

"….." Moon watched the turn of events with both awe and jealous. On the one hand, she was amazed at how quickly Ash was able to dispatch that Pokémon that hunted her and Lillie…but on the other, she was jealous. Jealous that he was able to do such a thing with relative ease, while she struggled and failed to protect her dearest friend. These blend of emotions bubbled inside her, but eventually she shook it off and hurried to Lillie's side. They both had some bruises and cuts on them. "Are you okay?"

"Mhm. Are you and Pichu?" Lillie asked.

"Y-Yeah…" Moon scooped Pichu into her arms. "We're okay…"

.

.

"Damn…" The Team Rocket Grunts started to fade away, just as the ones Gladion fought. "We're out of time…!"

"Out of time!? What does that even mean!?" Elizabeth demanded to know. "Where did you come from!?"

"That doesn't concern you now!" Another grunt said bitterly. As if they'd give these people answers. "Just know that we'll be back eventually!"

"Eventually? So that means you blew your one chance for a while." Grace picked up on that. "I'm not surprised that Team Rocket would fail!"

"We are Team Rainbow Rocket! And we will not stop until his ambition is fulfilled!" A grunt said as they were on the verge of being forced to return to their world.

"Team…Rainbow Rocket?" Scott was just as confused as the others.

Takeba had her eyes on a prize. "Honchkrow, use Psychic!" What was her aim? That Z-ring the Braviary rider hand on him! Takeba was aware that it was a dangerous item in the wrong hands, which is precisely why she had Honchkrow snatch it telepathically!

"Hey, wait…!?" The grunt realized this theft, but it was too late. The Ultra Wormholes that opened closed and the Rainbow Rocket Grunts were all gone…

"…Did you just steal that Z-ring?" Marcus stared at his significant other.

Takeba stuck her tongue out playfully, sliding the Z-ring onto her wrist. "Yup!"

.

.

Next Time: Aether Paradise.


	16. Chapter 16: Aether Paradise

The earlier incident came to a close. The Shadow Drapion had been captured by the Ultra Guardians for safe keeping, and the Team Rocket members who appeared vanished. Right now, Ash and his friends were sitting in a helicopter that was heading to the Aether Paradise. Gladion was joining them since he also wanted answer on what just happened. It was a bit of a silent ride and Takeba could not stand this tension. "…So, is everyone all right?" She broke the ice. Someone had to.

"We're fine!" Ash said. "Thanks to you guys coming in at the right time."

"Yeah, we were really in a bind back there." Lana admitted. Her attention then turned to Moon and Lillie. "But are you two okay?" The two girls sustained some injury in their escape battle against the Shadow Drapion.

"I'm okay." Lillie said with a soft nod. Her dress had some dirt and tears in it, and her skin had some bruises and cuts, but she was ultimately all right. The same could be said for Moon, at least physically. "Snowy and Pichu put up a hard fight to protect us and I'm proud of them." But she did wish that she was stronger.

"I'm fine." Moon responded. "I'm just glad we were able to hold it off for so long."

"Those events were certainly not how I expected the day to pan out." Grace let out a sigh. She then glanced at Takeba, who was admiring her new Z-ring. "I cannot believe you stole that."

"Seriously, what the heck?" Elizabeth was staring at the pinkette judgmentally. "I know you wanted a Z-ring, but…"

"What's the problem?" Takeba lifted a brow as everyone in the helicopter stared at her judgmentally.

"You're a thief." Elizabeth said, then turning to Marcus. "Your girlfriend is a thief."

"Well…" Marcus rubbed the back of his head. They weren't wrong but did they have to say it like that. "I'm sure she did it for good reason!"

"Of course!" Takeba said. "It was clearly dangerous in their possession, so I had to snatch it away from them."

"That logic still makes you a thief-roto!" Rotom said, putting this into his database for whatever reason. "100%!"

"You can't argue with numbers." Sophocles added.

"It's not wrong." Gladion remarked quietly.

"Gah!" Takeba huffed. "What's the big deal? It's just a Z-ring!"

"You have to be careful with that!" Kiawe exclaimed suddenly, catching everyone off guard with how passionate he became about it. "A Z-ring is an integral piece of Alolan culture! You can't wield it and expect to get results with it!" Kiawe was so passionate, there were flames blazing around his body! Anyone who knew Kiawe knew that when it came to this topic, he could get a little scary with how much he was into it.

"I know that! I was reading about it!" Takeba responded. "I stole this for good reason. It's dangerous in the wrong hands."

"I'd rather it be in a friend's hands than not." Mallow smiled. "I'm sure it'll be in good hands with her."

"…You're right." Kiawe settled down. "Just make sure you see an Island Kahuna first. They have to test that you're capable of using it."

"Okay!" Takeba smiled.

This talk about Z rings made Moon stare at her own. Her mind flashed back to when Gigavolt Havoc failed. That failure almost cost her and Lillie serious injury. _"It was up to me to stop it…but I wasn't able to…" _ She thought to herself.

"…Are you okay?" Lillie's voice held concern for Moon.

"…I just…wish I didn't mess up…" Moon mumbled. "That Pokémon…what was that? I don't remember a lot of things, but I would remember seeing a Drapion so aggressive."

"I have no data of a Drapion being that violent-roto." Rotom floated around.

Ash was the one who caught the Drapion after it had been defeated. It was resting within a standard Pokeball supplied by the Aether Foundation. "It…was probably a Shadow Pokémon."

"I knew it." Elizabeth's gaze narrowed.

"A…what?" Lana tilted her head. "I've never heard of that kind of Pokémon."

"It's a long story." Scott crossed his arms, keeping his eyes closed as the events in Kalos replayed in his mind. "We'll tell you as soon as we meet with the President of Aether. That would be your mother, wouldn't it?" One eye opened, staring at Gladion and Lillie.

"That's right." Gladion responded. "She may be able to help with your friend over here." The boy gestured at Moon.

"We're friends, too, right?" Moon turned to Gladion, a little more hopeful than she should've been for what was coming next.

"I…" Gladion's response was about to be cold, but then he turned to Lillie. She had informed him beforehand of the situation regarding Moon's memory and potential home. It would certainly cause a stir if her best friend's brother didn't remember her. It was best to avoid any awkward scenarios until they met Lusamine. "…We're not enemies." Was his immediate go to.

"Ah, that sounds like you." Moon could at least faintly smile at that.

"…." Gladion remained silent. When he looked at Lillie again, she had an expression that was both 'thank you' and 'I'm sorry'.

Marcus then looked out the window, staring at the facility that was known as the Aether Paradise. "Whoa…is that Aether? It's huge!"

"Yup!" Mallow gave a great big smile. "Welcome to Aether!"

.

.

The helicopter landed and everyone stepped out. As soon as Lillie stepped out, Lusamine was already upon her daughter, tightly squeezing Lillie out of concern after hearing what had happened. "Oh, Lillie! I heard what happened! You're covered in bruises, are you okay?! Do you need anything!?" Normally Lusamine had a tendency to be a little overbearing and embarrassing at times, but after the events that occurred, it was an understandable reaction.

"I-I'm fine, Mother…" Lillie waved her hands, trying to reassure her mother that the bruises weren't anything serious.

"You were hurt! I can't forgive anyone that attacked you like that!" Lusamine immediately replied. She then turned to Gladion. "Are you okay?"

"Just fine." Gladion replied.

Elizabeth just kind of stared at Lusamine. "_That's _Lillie's mom!?"

"Yup!" Ash said while taking a few steps forward. "She runs Aether!"

Not quite what Elizabeth was getting at, but she couldn't believe the woman she was looking at! Grace noticed this and placed a hand on the bluenette's shoulder, shaking her head. "Not. Now."

"…So one day?" Elizabeth immediately responded, causing Grace and Takeba to groan.

Moon seemed a little stunned at the sight before her. Watching Lillie and Lusamine like this felt a little…odd to her. This was a little different than she remembered, or so she thought. Did they always get along like this? "Um…" Still, she wasn't quite sure what to say, so she just awkwardly rubbed her bruised arm.

Lusamine noticed Moon and the small injuries on her. "…Moon, is it? You're hurt, too."

"Mhm." Moon nodded. "It's nothing, though."

"Nonsense." Lusamine shook her head, gesturing for Moon and Lillie to follow her. "Come with me. I'll patch those little bruises up in no time. It's the least I can do for the girl that tried to defend my daughter." Left with no real choice, Moon and Lillie followed behind Lusamine as she took them to the nearest infirmary within the facility.

Marcus glanced around. "So…what about the rest of us?"

That was when Wicke and Faba stepped forward. "We'll be taking you to the president's office where we can discuss the earlier events."

"So do make sure not to wander off." Faba added. "We're very busy as is."

"I don't like your vibes, sir." Grace pointed at Faba.

.

.

On the way to Lusamine's office, they naturally passed through the Pokémon preserve. Rotom was flying around, taking pictures on some Pokémon it had seen before, just to update their progress on its database. "Everyone seems to be looking better-roto!"

"Aether serves as a rescue for lost and injured Pokémon." Wicke explained to the faction of the group unfamiliar with the organization. "The Pokémon you see here have all been rescued from one disaster or another."

"And it's our duty to ensure that they stay healthy." Faba added. "We do this for every Pokémon in Alola."

"Wow, Aether's pretty cool." Takeba was leaning over the railing, staring at some Pokémon that were being fed by employees. She almost ended up falling over, but thankfully Marcus pulled her back. "Ehehe…"

"But that's not all that Aether does." Wicke continued. "We also research the phenomenon that is the Ultra Wormholes."

"Those creepy holes in the sky?" Elizabeth asked and Wicke nodded.

"That's right. And should something come from those Wormholes, we task the Ultra Guardians to take care of it." Wicke said.

"I see…" Scott nodded slowly.

"Yeah, I was gonna ask what those tacky outfits were for." Takeba pointed at Ash and his friends.

"Tacky?" Mallow stared at her green uniform. "I thought they were nice and fit us!"

"So you guys act as a force that quells otherworldly beings? That's kinda cool." Marcus was clearly jealous.

"It's not as fun as it sounds." Kiawe remarked. "Some of those Ultra Beasts are really frightening…" His memory of seeing the underside of a Stakataka would forever haunt him. There were some things they were just never meant to see and he unfortunately caught a glimpse into that realm.

"…Is he okay?" Elizabeth was a little concerned.

"He should be." Lana placed her hands on her hips.

"Anyway!" Faba focused on Takeba's Z-Ring. "You…acquired this from one of those interlopes, is that correct? I would love the chance to study it! A Z-ring from an alternate Alola…"

"Eh…" Takeba pulled her arm away. "You can't just ask a girl that kind of question."

"Those people were after Moon." Ash crossed his arms. "If they came from another world, then she must've also." The evidence all said so. It was a safe consensus to finally say that Moon wasn't from their world.

"I wonder what she did…" Sophocles pondered aloud. It was a pretty impressive feat to have a coordinated strike from an entirely different world just for one person.

"She probably doesn't remember." Gladion said taking a guess based on the information he had. "That being said, she could be dangerous." And of course he was the one bringing up the possibility that no one wanted to hear.

"I doubt it!" Ash's optimism struck. "She risked her own wellbeing to help Pikachu and the others, and she fought really hard to keep Lillie safe."

Gladion couldn't argue with that. Clearly the thought never crossed Ash's mind either. So the boy let out a quiet sigh and relented. He could give Moon the benefit of the doubt since she had Lillie's word backing her up. "Alright."

"This is a riveting conversation, but the President should be involved too, don't you think?" Faba was getting the group back on track. "Her office is right this way."

.

.

Lusamine, Moon, and Lillie were all waiting in Lusamine's office. The two young girls had bandages covering their bruises. The President was at her desk, while the others had just arrived. "I apologize for failing to introduce myself earlier. My name is Lusamine, the President of the Aether Foundation. I wanted to thank you for aiding the Ultra Gaurdians against that unknown threat earlier."

"Not a problem!" Takeba spoke for everyone. "They were ruining our vacation anyway."

"I want to ask about the people who attacked, but first…" Lusamine turned to Ash. "You caught that Pokémon, didn't you?"

"Yeah." Ash nodded. He didn't call out the Drapion, for he didn't want to risk it running out in a rampage, but he did hold up its Pokeball, allowing Faba to analyze it. "This is the Drapion that attacked Moon and Lillie."

"What is this…?" Faba's eyes gleamed with intrigue. "This Pokémon is unlike anything I've seen before. Its heart has been closed off completely. It's like…it's some sort of machine!"

"That's a Shadow Pokémon." Elizabeth stepped forward. "This meeting is actually beneficial for me, since I've come to Alola on urgent business."

Lusamine and the others blinked. "A…Shadow Pokémon?" The President was at a loss.

"We'll give you the short version." Grace said. "There was an organization called Cipher that messed with Pokémon, turning them into tools of war. They were defeated twice by two separate parties, but a year ago, they resurfaced in Kalos with a new leader. They were once again using Pokémon as tools a-and…" The next part was a little difficult for her.

Marcus placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, taking over for her. It wasn't easy on him either, but it was harder on Grace. "They were experimenting using people, too." That bit of information came as a shock to those unaware of Cipher. "They used a close friend of ours, Kasumi, as a prototype. Turns out it produced some scary results with equally frightening backlash. It was a tough battle and we managed to defeat Cipher and their leader, but…Kasumi put her life on the line to save us. We wouldn't be here if not for her."

Ash's school friends glanced at him. His expression did fall a bit at the mention of Kasumi. "We didn't know you'd come through something like that, Ash." Mallow said with a slight frown. That feeling of loss was absolutely one she could relate to.

Kasumi's absence still weighed heavily on those that knew her. "During the attack on Cipher's base, a certain individual stole a few Shadow Pokémon and made an escape while we were busy. Flash forward a few weeks ago and they also busted out a lead scientist in the operation." Elizabeth explained. "And we've every reason to believe that they're now lurking in Alola somewhere, with more of these Pokémon at their disposal. We have methods of purifying them, but we can't let Cipher get any momentum this time."

"I see." Lusamine understood the situation. "I'll keep an eye out on any strange activity, then. It would be dangerous if Alola was overrun by these dangerous Pokémon."

Moon then lifted a hand. "Wait. So you're saying that the Pokémon that attacked Lillie and I…and the people who attacked us were two separate incidents?!" And that was exactly right. Moon and Lillie's second encounter was nothing more than bad luck.

"Team Rainbow Rocket." Scott uttered those words. "Those were the people that attacked. We thought them to just be Team Rocket, but one of them gave a parting message before they were forced to return from where they came from."

"Rainbow Rocket?" Ash shook his head. "But it's just Team Rocket here. I know that symbol anywhere!"

"Yes, that is the case for _you_." Faba adjusted his goggles. "But if these people truly came from another world, then it's only natural that it could be different."

"They came from another world!?" Moon's eyes widened. "But then…what did they want with me!?" And _this _was where things got tricky. As soon as that last syllable left Moon's lips, tension filled the air. This topic was going to come up today one way or another, but now that they were at the moment of truth, they weren't sure how to go about it.

No one had the courage to break the news. So Lusamine decided she was the one who had to do it. "Moon. I understand that your memories are currently fragmented and that you're confused, but you need to listen to what you're about to hear. You…aren't from _this_ Alola."

Moon blinked several times, unsure how to react. Her brain was processing the information but she then laughed it off. "Come on, Lusamine. That's not funny. How could I not be from Alola? I may not remember much, but I do remember the sights I've seen and the people I've met! I remember going through the Island Challenge, Nebby, and saving you when you went fused with the Ultra Beast!"

"…I…" Lusamine was stunned. That _did _happen, but Moon was never around for that. At least to her. "I see…so things have played out similarly where you come from…"

"Wait, does Moon really not come from here?" Takeba whispered to the others.

"Moon…" Lillie frowned. This was an inevitable conversation, but watching Moon deny it hurt her a little bit.

"I have to…belong here, don't I?" Moon stopped laughing as the possibility started to set in.

"Has anything been off for you since you've been wandering around Alola this past week?" Wicke gently inquired.

"Well, I…" Moon paused. Her interactions with people she _thought_ she knew hadn't gone the way she expected. Not to mention… "I can't find my house…" Her hazel eyes averted down to the ground. "Or my mom…"

"She's been here without anyone…" Lana frowned.

"But I still don't understand…" Moon looked up. "I'm from another world? But everything I know is so familiar, it feels like home, Lillie's here, so I don't…"

Lusamine and Wicke stared at each other. They had to be extremely careful from this point on. If Moon's memories weren't as fragmented as they were, this conversation would likely go smoother. But telling someone with amnesia that the place that looked and felt like home…wasn't their home. They were shoving prove of her nonexistence in her face. They could only be but so gentle about it as well and they had a conversation about the many ways to traverse this topic. "You see…" Lusamine began.

And that's when Faba spoke up. "It's quite simple. You hail from a version of Alola that must run parallel to our own. Similar events have played out in your Alola coinciding with our own. While you've taken a slightly different path than those here, everything is ultimately the same for you. That is why you recognize the people and places in Alola. However, the people do not recognize you, because it is the first time they've seen you. For example: The Lillie you know, and the Lillie that you've been clinging to here are two completely different people. The reason you haven't been able to see your mother is because she is not here. In short…in our world, you don't exist."

"….." Moon's jaw dropped. Her expression paled and she was utterly horrified at the information Faba told her. "I…don't exist…?" Tears welled in her eyes and without wasting a second, Moon stood up and sprinted out the door.

"Moon!" Lillie immediately followed after her.

The others just stared at Faba. "FABA!" Lusamine and Wicke shouted angrily. They couldn't believe he said that so bluntly!

"What!?" Faba didn't understand at first, but then he read the room. "OH! …Was that not gentle?"

"NO!" Everyone in the room yelled at once. How could he be so careless?!

"You wouldn't know gentle if I punched you!" Elizabeth was about to, but Takeba and Marcus held her back.

"You _really _need to work on your people skills!" Ash said, just as upset as the others.

Faba had been yelled at enough to know when he made a mistake. Out of all the things he'd done, this was probably his worst one yet. "…I feel as though I've made an egregious error…"

.

.

Next Time: Nonexistence.


	17. Chapter 17: Nonexistence

The room was a little heavy after Faba's poor wording. Telling Moon that she didn't exist was the worst way to go about telling her she wasn't from their world. Naturally she didn't take it well and ran out the room on the verge of tears with Lillie chasing after her. Elizabeth was on the verge of punching Faba. He meant well in telling the truth, but he was bad at it. "Ugh…" Elizabeth pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Faba meant well." Lusamine said. She understood that Faba took it upon himself to do the job of informing Moon of the truth, but he did a little too well of a job.

"I think she would have responded better if you left out the part where she didn't exist." Mallow huffed. There was no use getting mad over it now, but she was still upset Faba used such cruel wording!

"This whole other world business kind of goes over my head." Takeba scratched her head. "Ash has a thing from another world, Moon is from another world…those Team Rocket people must be from another world because they were after her. How many worlds are there!? I thought there was just one!" Naturally, the idea of alternate realities was not something a normal person would be exposed to or be expected to accept that easily.

"This information isn't something that the general populous is aware of." Faba stated, his gaze shifting around to see if the others would yell at him again. He seemed to be in the clear for the time being so he continued. "Ultra Wormholes lead to an incalculable amount of worlds. The Ultra Beasts we've seen are only a fraction of what these places have to offer."

"Uhhh…." Takeba's eyes started spinning, steam coming out of her ears from trying to think about it.

"In short, there are a lot of worlds, some of which are parallel to our own." Wicke said. "In Moon's case, it seems as though her world has had similar events play out compared to ours."

"Which means that Lillie and a few other others _do_ exist where she's from." Kiawe stroked his chin in thought. "And she said she completed the Island Challenge, which must be true as well."

"Another incident with an Ultra Wormhole…" Gladion mumbled. This situation reminded him too much about the incident concerning his father, Mohn.

"No wonder she was so confused." Lana crossed her arms. "She doesn't have her memory, but everything around her looks and feels the same…even the people are the same. I feel bad…"

"Me too…" Sophocles nodded in agreement. With the truth about Moon out in the open, it was hard not to feel bad for the girl. Lost in a home faraway from home. "Is there a chance we can help her get back home?"

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Grace crossed her arms. "The Team Rocket of that world was after her. If she's this far away from home with people on her tail, who knows how her Alola is faring. Furthermore, I wouldn't feel right sending an amnesiac back when she's got a target on her back."

"I agree." Lusamine said. "Not only would it be dangerous sending her home in her condition, but there's also the issue that we might not be able to."

"You…might not be able to?" Ash asked. "But that's…"

"Bad? I know." Lusamine rested her hands on her desk. "Based on the Ultra Wormholes that opened up on Melemele earlier, they were temporary. We won't be able to open them up." Which was generally how they managed to return Ultra Beasts back to their own world.

"That's an issue…" Ash stroked his chin. If they couldn't open up the Ultra Wormholes from their side, that effectively meant that Moon was stuck here.

"Moon is a rare case of an actual person falling through an Ultra Wormhole into another world." Lusamine explained to everyone. "She is what we call a Faller. Faller's give of a signature that is very similar to an Ultra Wormhole, so Ultra Beasts are attracted to them. They can't tell the difference between a Faller and a Wormhole, so they assume they are one and the same." She didn't think she needed to say why this was an issue.

"So that's why Naganadel kept giving Moon strange looks." It was all coming together for Ash. "It won't attack her, will it?"

"If it hasn't then you have no need to worry." Wicke offered a slight smile. "But it is concerning. I wonder what could have happened to that girl to whisk her so far away from home…?"

"Furthermore…" Scott was finally adding his piece in. "That Team Rocket. They mentioned that they would be unable to make another attempt for some time. I can only infer that the devices they are using must be devices from this Foundation, yes? I understand that this is an assumption, but I have a strong feeling that something has happened to the Aether Foundation in Moon's Alola if they can travel to this world almost freely."

Scott made a good point. One that Faba had to investigate using the equipment they had here. "I see. If anything that means the power source for the machines they used must be limited. Now if I can determine how much time we have before another attempt…"

"Hey, maybe he is good for something." Elizabeth nudged Gladion, who didn't seem too particular pleased. "…Tough kid, huh."

.

.

Lillie was running right after Moon. Luckily Moon didn't get too far ahead; it seemed like she knew where she wanted to go. Moon was sitting outside on the ground, her arms wrapped around her knees as she tried to take in what Faba had told her. Pichu was desperately trying to comfort her, but it wasn't doing much good. Lillie was at a crossroads now, but decided to see if Moon was all right. "Moon…?"

Moon didn't respond at first. She wiped away her tears so no one could see her cry, and then stared out at the ocean. "I don't exist to you, do I?"

"…!" Lillie's eyes widened. She wasn't prepared for that statement and had trouble finding the right words. After what Moon told her earlier, Lillie realized that this probably hit Moon a lot harder than it looked. And Lillie was the only one who knew this. "N-No, that's not it at all!"

"I'm sorry, Lillie." Moon let out a dry laugh while rubbing Pichu's head. "I should've realized it sooner, but I was too dazed to really catch on, even though the signs were all right there. You called me Mizuki _because _you didn't know my name. You have a Z-ring, a Pokémon…you're a little different than the Lillie I knew, but everything about you is also the same. You two were so alike and she was the only thing I could remember, so I attached to you immediately. Even though I talked and acted like we knew each other for ages, you've only really known me for a few days. That must have been terribly awkward for you, putting up with me like this. This girl that you don't even know."

"Moon, it's not like that…" Lillie shook her head. She chose not to confirm how awkward it really was, since she knew that would make Moon feel worse. "Even if we haven't known each other for very long, that doesn't mean _we _aren't friends!"

"…." Moon didn't respond to that immediately. "Lillie...did you pretend like you knew me to avoid hurting me?"

"…I did." Lillie admitted, glancing away. "I'm sorry. You sounded so fond of the Lillie you know, and so sad at the same time. I didn't want to take away the one thing you could remember."

"…That sounds like something you'd do. Thanks." Moon replied. "You two really are so similar, it's no wonder I got confused. Even if you're slightly different, you're still the same Lillie. Ah…well, no, that's not quite right."

Lillie took a seat next to Moon, glancing at her with a smile. If anything, her presence was keeping Moon's spirits up. "I was worried how you'd take this news. I've known for a while that you weren't from here…right when you showed me that picture."

"Yeah, I guess that would tip you off…" Moon sighed. "Despite my initial gripes about Alola, it's become my home. When I woke up I didn't think anything was off, but the more time I spent here, the more I started to notice. I knew in the back of my mind that I didn't belong here…that I didn't have a place here in Alola." It was a very alienating experience. "There was you and I had a bit of hope that it was all wrong, but you weren't the person I thought. So that only made things worse for the each of us. I can't remember who I am, what I am, or where I even came from. I could be a terrible person for all I know."

"Moon…That's not" Lillie wanted to say something. She wanted to say that Moon did have a place, say that she could find one with her, but, well…those words likely wouldn't mean anything coming from her too. So all Lillie could do was stay silent. She couldn't imagine how it felt for Moon. So far away from everything she knew; her friends, potentially pokemon, and even her own family.

Moon had nothing more to say. "…"The air between the two was now even more awkward with the misunderstanding being cleared. Lillie wasn't sure how to approach Moon, and Moon wasn't sure how to approach Lillie now knowing she was a different person.

"When I was little, I had a terrible experience with an Ultra Beast." Lillie started. This caused Moon to turn curiously, facing her for the first time since they started talking. "A Nihilego grabbed me and it was very frightening, but Silvally saved me. But…my memories of that day were locked away tight. It was so traumatizing, I grew a fear of Pokémon. I couldn't even touch them without freezing up and I had no idea why."

Moon blinked several times, genuinely interested in Lillie's story. "When did that change?"

Lillie held up Snowy's Pokeball, calling forth the Alolan Vulpix. It happily nuzzled into Lillie's arms. "I hatched Snowy from an egg. It still took me a while to feel comfortable touching it, but I couldn't imagine what I'd do without Snowy, or Ash and the others. They've helped me so much. They helped me rescue my mother when she was taken by Ultra Beast, and it's because of them that my family has recovered. I owe them so much and I'm very grateful for all they've done."

"Wow…" Moon seemed both awed and a little upset. This Lillie had come a long way in a different, yet similar way than her own. "That's different from my Lill-, er, the Lillie I know."

"How so?" Lillie tilted her head. She'd heard a little bit, but Moon didn't quite go into the full details before they were interrupted. "Tell me about her."

Moon nodded slowly. "Like I said, you two are the same personality wise. She was always there supporting me during my island challenge." She then paused. "Watching Lusamine here, well…she seemed much more loving and caring to you." Moon said and that put a pit in Lillie's stomach. "The Lillie I know ran away from home with Nebby, because she was worried what Lusamine would do. Lusamine was obsessed with her research, with Ultra Beasts. Both Lillie and Gladion ran away and went in separate directions. I supported Lillie's decisions to stand against her mother, who had gone off the deep end. You seem like such a happy family, but what I saw was the opposite. Lusamine only came around after the danger and she got terribly sick."

Lillie's eyes widened. This sounded like an awful alternative to the events that took place with her. "That's…"

"But there was supposedly a way to help her. My mind's a little fuzzy still, but after a big night with everyone from Alola, I told Lillie that I'd do anything I can to help her, that she can always lean on me." Moon's hazel gaze turned away. "I wonder if she didn't believe in me enough, because I wasn't strong enough to save Lusamine before she got sick. Because the next day, she nearly left Alola without saying goodbye."

"Ah…" The other her left? Lillie's green eyes carefully watched Moon's expression fall.

"I managed to catch up to her, but the goodbye wasn't…what I wanted…" Moon dug into her bag, pulling out a Clefairy Doll. "She let me have this as a memento. I cherish it, but…I never got to tell her what I wanted to say."

"What did you want to say?" Lillie asked, her gaze slowly going to the doll. She caught Moon sleeping with it during the night at Kukui's house, but never had the chance to inquire about it.

"I wanted to tell you—er, her, that I…" Moon shook her head. "I…forgot…"

Lillie knew what that meant. Moon didn't want to say it, and how could she be blamed? How awkward would it be, telling what's probably cherished words to someone that looks like, but isn't the person you know? "I'm sure you'll remember." But it did bother Lillie a bit…why would the other her leave without saying goodbye? As much as it would sadden her, Lillie planned to say goodbye to her friends when her own journey started. If she and the other Lillie were so similar, why couldn't she wrap her head around this decision?

"Well, I guess that's enough moping about it…" Moon stood up and stretched. "Being sad won't change the fact I don't exist here."

Lillie also stood up, Snowy in her arms. It was clear Moon was trying to put on a brave face despite making that claim so casually. So Lillie just wanted to support her. "The others are probably worried about you. Are you okay?"

"Not really." Moon admitted while beginning to walk back to Lusamine's office, Pichu propped on her shoulder. "But I don't want to drag you guys down. So I'll go back. I'll try not to be too much of a burden."

Again, not too much Lillie could say to that. It was like Moon was intentionally putting up a wall between them now, as to not get the Lillie's mixed up with each other. This only made it difficult for Lillie to interact with Moon, much to her dismay. Lille started to walk, staring down at Snowy who was also concerned. "I'm worried about her. I want to tell her she's not alone, but I'm not sure how I can do that. I think anything that comes from me might do more harm than good now…"

.

.

Next Time: The Shadow Initiative.


	18. Chapter 18: The Shadow Initiative

Moon and Lillie returned to Lusamine's office. By this point Moon had dried her tears and put on a brave face. This was her only way of dealing her nonexistence in this Alola. While Moon looked fine, the others could see on Lillie's face that something was up. "Are you all right, Moon?" Ash was the first one to ask.

"Just fine." Moon responded with a nod, placing her arms behind her back. "Sorry for worrying all of you."

"I guess she took it rather well…?" Takeba said quietly. She was trying to read the room and Moon was giving mixed symbols. To be fair, no one could quite read Moon right now either.

"I would've taken it a _lot _better if I wasn't told I didn't exist. So _thanks _for that, Faba." Moon was going through all sorts of emotions right now. But clearly she was upset at how blunt Faba was at delivering news.

"I am very sorry…!" Faba exclaimed. Moon's tone was not lost on him.

"Seriously, you can't go around telling people that." Elizabeth huffed.

"It's just a simple truth…" Faba adjusted his goggles. "There are likely other worlds where you don't exist as well." He told Elizabeth, but again, not the time or place.

"STOP IT!" Elizabeth yelled.

"…" One could see the distress on Moon's face, masked with a pout.

"Anyway…" Lusamine was trying to change the topic now that Moon returned. "Moon. I know this isn't what you need to hear right now, but keeping this information from you will only do more harm. As it stands right now, we have no way of returning you home. But I think that's for the best since you have a target on your back."

"I guess so." Moon shrugged. "I didn't know I had people after me…and it wouldn't be good for me going back as I am now."

"Do you know why they were after you?" Wicke inquired.

"Uhm…" Moon rocked her head back and forth. "No. They said I stole something, but I have absolutely no idea as to what that could be." It was quiet before she then had an idea. "Oh, actually…" From her short pocket, she pulled out a strange key; the only thing in her inventory that she had no recollection of. "I have this."

"How did you obtain that!?" Faba was the first one to ask. "That key is an important piece to one of our machines at Aether!"

"Is it?" Moon stared at the key. She was about to hand it over then realized that this was the key from her world, not theirs. This information was really messing with her and she groaned quietly to herself.

"Yes. It effectively serves as a power switch for a device that opens up Ultra Wormholes." Lusamine explained. "Without it, the machine barely functions. There are ways to force the machine to work, but it doesn't for very long and is very ineffective."

"So if we put the pieces together…" Rotom was adding everything together. "Moon comes from another Alola and that Team Rainbow Rocket is after her. But if she has this key that means they must be unable to freely open Ultra Wormholes-roto!"

"So…they're after me because they can't freely move about between worlds?" Moon scratched her head. "I don't remember how I got this, but I guess I must've been aware of what they were planning and stole it…"

"It seems like you were thinking ahead at the time." Lana said with a nod. But that still beget the question as to what exactly was happening over in Moon's Alola? It couldn't be anything good with that Team Rocket roaming about, but it didn't seem like bringing that up was a wise idea.

In fact, Lusamine was likely aware that the situation in Moon's Alola wasn't…the best, all things considered. But worrying Moon over something like that was counterintuitive. There was no reason to make this poor girl suffer or worry anymore today. "I think that key would be safer in your hands."

"You're trusting me with it…?" Moon pointed at herself.

"I think it's a good move!" Ash said with a firm nod. "You've kept it safe this far. And we'll be here to help you!" Ash and the rest of his friends all held friendly smiles. But those smiles just couldn't quite resonate with Moon.

"You did try to protect Lillie, so…" Gladion mumbled. But his voice was still loud enough for Moon to hear; whether this was intention or not wasn't clear.

"…Okay, thanks." She managed a halfhearted smile of her own. She wouldn't deny their help, but nothing was going to stop her from feeling like an outcast since she technically was.

"Shadow Pokémon, another Alola…" Wicke was keeping track of all of this. "Moon, if you have any more questions, I'm sure that Professor Burnet will be happy to aid you. She works with us and knows about Ultra Wormholes as well."

"And we have but one more question for you all before you leave." Lusamine said, gesturing to Marcus and the others. "I know this may seem out of the blue, but since Alola seems to have one more wave of danger coming its way, I'd like to ask if you'd be a part of the Ultra Guardians. We were going to disband them soon, but…"

"You mean we get to wear those cool outfits?" Marcus asked.

"You thought those were cool!?" Takeba's eyes widened in horror. As the fashionista, this wounded her.

"They're surprisingly comfortable." Kiawe added as if that would convince Takeba otherwise.

"If we're going to be staying in Alola for a while, I don't see why not." Grace shrugged her shoulders. "If Cipher is still standing on its last legs, then I say we go for it. I don't like leaving things half finished."

"We'll join the Ultra Guardians, then." Scott said simply.

Lusamine clasped her hands together. "Wonderful! I'll need you all to stay just a little longer then so we can take your measurements!" She had to make their outfits perfectly tailored after all.

"Yes, please take my measurements." Elizabeth said on instinct. "I also call dibs on black and red!"

"I want pink!" Takeba shouted.

"…I'm already pink." Lillie mumbled.

"I don't particularly care." Scott said.

Mallow leaned over, giving Moon a smile. "What about you, Moon? Do you want to join the Ultra Guardians as well?"

"Ah…" Moon thought about it for a moment before shaking her head. "Sorry, I don't think I'm suited for that sort of thing. Protecting Alola...should be your guys' job." As in she felt like she shouldn't join the Ultra Guardians because this Alola wasn't hers to defend. It had gone on safely without her, and her inclusion wouldn't change much, she thought.

"Well, we'll always have a spot open if you change your mind!" Ash gave Moon a childish grin. Pikachu also did the same.

"While we take care of your friends, the rest of you are free to go home. It's been a long day." Lusamine said while standing up from her seat. "We'll let you know when we have an idea of Team Rainbow Rocket's next attack. The next time they plan to strike, we will be prepared to counter attack! But you have my word that they will not be able to strike for a while, so you can relax."

"I'm so hungry…" Sophocles was ready to go home and eat!

Just before Lillie and Gladion could leave, Lusamine moved faster than light, wrapping her arms around both her children to embrace them tightly. "And I'm so glad my babies are safe! You two fought so hard out there, I'm proud of you!"

"M-Mother…!" Lillie was so embarrassed by this!

"M-Mother…" Gladion grit his teeth, glancing away with embarrassment written all over his angsty expression. They understood that Lusamine was worried about them, but did she have to act like this in front of everyone!? At least it got a good laugh out of everyone.

Everyone except for Moon, who was starting to see more and more how this Alola differed from her own, despite its similarities. "…"

.

.

In an undisclosed location somewhere in Alola….

There was a lab somewhere within the Alola region. Trudley returned to what was Chiper's temporary base of operations, panicking after the events of the Shadow Drapion. "We got a problem, boss! The Shadow Drapion has been captured!"

His large afro jiggled at the news. Miror B turned around, jiving in place. "Oh, is that so? Now that has just gone and ruined my dance flow! Is what I would say if this wasn't an acceptable outcome."

"Huh?" Trudely tilted his head. The peon of Miror B did not understand. "But that means the International Police are onto us now! They know we're here in Alola! I barely escaped that blue haired chick from Kalos the other day, too!"

"It sounds like they're really onto us…" Said Folly, the other peon of Miror B. "What do we do, boss? They're gonna hunt us down!"

"Let them." That voice came from Cipher's former head scientist: Ein. Everyone's favorite. "They can run around in circles attempting to pinpoint our location, but they won't find us in time before our grand plan begins."

"You can stop pretending like this is a group effort." Miror B said while grinning at Ein. "We all know you're acting on your own interests. But that's just the thing I like about your groove, Ein old friend! I'm just interested in snagging as many Pokémon as I possibly can before putting the world under the Miror B groove!"

Ein's shades hid the exasperated roll of his eyes. "And yet you released me from prison; not Venus, not Gorrigan, not Ardos."

"Because you were the brains of the operation!" Miror B responded with a wide grin. "Venus is lovely, but she's fallen so far from grace after that tournament in Kalos. And Lovrina turned into a goody goody! Now she works for the International Police and the only one capable of combating her brain is the original scientist behind the project!" Also, Miror B only had enough time to break one person out of prison.

Ein was well aware Miror B was just saying the things he wanted to hear, but this was fine. It served as proper motivation. "Lovrina has been a thorn in my side from the very beginning. I'll gladly be rid of her. That being said, the capture of Shadow Drapion doesn't matter, for that was a test. When the HQ in Kalos fell and I was imprisoned, the data was stolen away by the International Police. Luckily your sticky fingers snagged the few remaining Shadow Pokémon in our possession."

"Because the boss is amazing!" Folly grinned.

"Yeah, sure," Ein ignored the two grunts and continued talking, bringing up a map of the Alola region for all to see. "I've been doing some research on Alola and digging deep into its culture. That's when I discovered something interesting. Z-Power is a source of energy only found within the Alola region. I thought Mega Evolution could be the pinnacle of Shadow Power, but I see now that there were even more options than before. So, what would happen if we mixed Z-Power with Shadow Power?" As Ein spoke, held up a Z-ring. Obviously it was obtained through dubious means, but this was the catalyst for his new experiment. "Z-moves are strong moves, but they are fleeting. If we could replicate that strength permanently…"

"Oh ho!" Miror B clasped his hands together, performing a flip and stylishly stuck the landing. "Using the peak of Z-Power to flood into a Pokémon, along with Shadow Power? Now that sounds like a devilishly powerful combination!"

"Uh," Trudely spoke up. "But do you really think we can get away with such a thing freely? Isn't this place protected by like, four Island Guardians? I've heard they're really strong!"

Ein pressed a button, showing Tapu Koko, Fini, Bulu, and Lele on the screen, each one on their respective island. "The Island Guardians. Protectors of Alola. Yes, after a certain point, I doubt they'll leave us to our own devices. But that is perfectly fine. I want to catch their attention down the line…because I wish to catch them."

"Bold plans!" Miror B was loving it. A daring dance! "The climax of your research, I assume?"

"Indeed." Ein nodded. "Once I have completed research in Alola, I will aim to make the Tapus mine as Shadow Pokémon! Then Alola will have no choice but to bow to me."

"That's a pretty huge jump." Folly said. "I know you guys managed to get Mewtwo as a Shadow Pokémon, but you had a much bigger operation then. We're just…a few dudes."

"You don't think I've accounted for that? The first thing I want to do when we have more firepower is release a few of our allies from prison." Ein said. "Even if they've fallen from grace, even I know we cannot hope to win the coming war with such a small force. There is also one thing I'd like to try before aiming for the Tapus."

"And that is?" Miror B lifted a brow, sliding in place.

"There is a strange phenomenon I've learned recently known as Ultra Wormholes. Supposedly they lead to other worlds. Creatures who reside in these other worlds are called Ultra Beasts." Ein adjusted his shades. "I would like to see if I could have them under my grasp as well."

"You just keep doing you, darling." Miror B said while waving a hand. "You're free to do whatever you like. After all, I busted you out to help me, and you seem to have that covered!"

The condition for Miror B not turning Ein back over was to aid him. Ein accepted these conditions and was pleasantly surprised to find that he was generally left to do as he pleased so long as Miror B approved, and Miror B was rather generous if it meant he could capture more Pokémon. "Heh. You won't regret it. And if possible, I need to find another contender for Shadow Trainers. XD-002 was a fine prototype…"

"You know…" Trudely began. "The ones who caught Shadow Drapion? It was that kid and his friends from Kalos, the ones who stopped you guys before."

This information made Ein's eyes widen in delight. "…Is that so? I think this will be a very fun opportunity. The Shadow Initiative will lead way into the Shadow Project's Second Coming!"

.

.

A few days had gone by. It was early morning and Takeba was reading up on the Island Challenge. Now that she had a Z-ring, obtained through her questionable methods, she was trying to decide what she wanted to do first. Eventually she got an idea and closed the book, pumping a fist into the air. "It sounds like we'll have some hard battles ahead of us in the future. So that's why I'm going to buckle down and challenge a Kahuna!"

.

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Next Time: Takeba's Trial.


	19. Chapter 19: Takeba's Trial

Days passed since the incident with Team Rainbow Rocket and the Shadow Drapion. Elizabeth had gone to report the incident while the others continued with their usual day to day lives. There wasn't much they could do until they had more information and worrying about it all wouldn't do anything. So right now, Ash and Moon were home alone, sitting on the couch while watching Rotom's favorite show, Detective Laki. Rotom even had its lucky wig that matched the main character's hair! Ash was sitting normally on the couch, while Moon was once again sitting upside down. "This is the type of stuff you guys watch?"

"Yes-roto!" Rotom said happily, staring intently at the TV screen. It so happened to be a new episode so of course it was into it. "I think the Aggron did it!"

"I think it was the Magmar!" Ash said and Pikachu seemed to agree.

"Hm…" Moon furrowed her brows. She had been keeping up with the story thus far but still couldn't wrap her head around it. "I don't think we had shows like back in my Alola. Then again, I don't really remember watching TV. Anyway, I think it was the Aggron, too."

Pichu then hopped onto Moon's stomach, poking her to ask if she'd get dizzy sitting like that, with all the blood rushing to her head. "Pi?"

"I'm finnnne." Moon waved a hand. Of course as soon as she said that she ended up falling over and got dizzy. "Gah…" Swirls were in her eyes and the room was spinning. "Wait, hold on…everything's spinning…"

"Ah! It was the Aggron!" Rotom said excitedly.

"Aw man…" Ash sighed. He totally fell for the Magmar fakeout!

"What happened…" Moon shook her head. "Agh…I'm hungry."

Ash's stomach rumbled as well. "…Me too." Professor Burnet and Kukui left for shopping, leaving Ash and Moon alone early in the morning. "I guess we should start breakfast, huh?"

"Yeah, let's feed the others first." Moon hopped down the first floor. It was a good thing she did, because she saw a hungry Melmetal getting ready to eat one of the frying pans, and Rowlet was desperately trying to keep Melmetal from doing so. "Ah! It's hungry!"

"Ah! No! Melmetal!" Ash hurried down the ladder to help Rowlet pry the frying pan away from Melmetal. "Moon!"

"I got it…!" Moon had to drag one of the spare steel beams that they used to fed Melmetal. She managed to get to it in time and satiated the hunger of the iron giant. "Oh thank goodness." Moon wiped the sweat from her brow.

"We barely made it…" Ash sighed before gathering everyone up, pouring the pokemon food in their respective bowls to feed them. While they ate, Ash and Moon were still hungry. "Ah…"

"Where did they go?" Moon groaned. Perhaps it was their fault for being up so early, but still! The adults left them to go shopping for… 'important' items. They had no breakfast!

"Maybe we can go see if Mallow will…" Ash began, but Mono shushed him.

"No." Moon shook her head, an odd fire in her eyes. "Mallow's cooking is great, but we'll never survive if we rely on other people to cook for us! You said you learned to fend for yourself, right!? Well it's time to put that to the test!"

Ash wasn't exactly sure what Moon was getting at, but her determination was rubbing off on him. "So what are we doing!?"

"Catch a Magikarp for a man, he eats for a day. Teach the man to catch Magikarp and he eats for life." Moon placed her hands on her hips. "What I'm saying is we're going to make breakfast for ourselves!"

"OOOH!" Ash's eyes sparkled. Last time he tried to cook for himself it didn't end well. But with Moon? How could this go wrong!?

"…" Pikachu and Pichu looked at each other as they ate. Neither one of them could see this ending well.

Moon went into the kitchen, opening the fridge to pull out a few ingredients. "Kukui and Burnet have been buying a lot of food lately, so we have plenty of things to use! Go grab some bowls!"

"Okay!" Ash nodded and went into the cabinets, pulling out a few bowls for them.

It was then that the cooking began. Moon and Ash worked together to create a fitting breakfast for the two of them. Things seemed to be going well, but the longer the process went on, the more an odd smell filled the house and their Pokémon were catching a whiff of it. Cue to a few minutes later and two bowls had been successfully made for them to dine on! Moon was making a checklist of the ingredients they used. "We used eggs, milk, various vegetables, a few apple slices, an orange, and….." Moon glanced over with a bit of a disgusted face. "It somehow ended up purple."

Rotom floated around…the mess that was debatably called food, snapping a few pictures. "There is a 99% chance that this is unsafe to eat!"

"Oh come on! It doesn't _look _that bad." Moon objected. "The smell though…"

"Y-Yeah…" Ash tilted his head at their bowls. They weren't exactly sure what they made, but the smell was pretty bad.

"Okay, hear me out. Worst comes to worst, I'm sure we can find some Alolan Grimers to eat this, right?" Moon asked.

"Oh yeah! They eat anything." Ash agreed.

"Especially toxic waste!" Rotom added.

"…Not sure how I feel about our cooking being referred to as toxic waste. But with this smell…I'm pretty sure that alone constitutes as a war crime." Moon said with a sweat drop before grabbing a spoon. "But I'm sure it doesn't taste as bad as it looks!"

"I don't even know what it's supposed to be." Rotom quipped. There was nothing in its database that could describe the creation Ash and Moon had created.

"Oh, be quiet! I'm sure it's just fine! Ready?" Moon looked at Ash.

"Ready!" Ash said. They both took a spoonful of what was supposed to be breakfast and scarfed it down. "T-That's not so…" And his face started to turn pale. "B-Bad…"

"Oh…I'm gonna…" Moon's expression paled as well.

It went poorly. Ash and Moon ended up hurling the contents of their breakfast on their respective mouse companions. It wasn't a pretty sight.

"Sorry Pikachu…"

"Sorry Pichu…" Neither of the mice appreciated that.

"Wow. Your combined intelligence resulted in something so horrible." Rotom was genuinely shocked. It was effectively saying that between the two of them, their intelligence, in this instance, was…not high.

So cue the two of them having to clean up the mess they made, and eventually find a place to dump that breakfast, because it was not working. It took about 20 minutes to clean up and as soon as they finished, there was a knock at the door. Ash was the one who answered since the doorbell was being pressed repeatedly. "Coming! Who is it?" He opened the door and Takeba's finger kept jabbing into his nose. "Ah! Ow!"

"Oh!" Takeba stopped. "You two are awake, perfect!" The heiress placed her hands behind her back. She was accompanied by Marcus, Lillie and Magearna, Elizabeth, and Scott. "Pack your bag, we're going to Akala Island!"

"Huh?" Ash was a of course taken aback by Takeba's sudden request.

"I'm taking the Island Challenge!" Takeba held up her Z-ring. "I wanna use this bad boy!"

"The thing she stole." Elizabeth wasn't letting that go.

"Is no an option?" Moon asked.

"No…" Lillie shook her head. Takeba practically dragged her out of her house!

"Ah…" Moon and Lillie made eye contact, gave each other a half smile, and then glanced away. The entire thing was awkward and everyone noticed.

Everyone but Ash. "Okay! Let's go!" The young boy said excitedly.

"Great! You're coming too, Moon." Takeba placed her hands on her hips.

"Wha!? Why!? I happen to be very busy!" Moon huffed.

"You can't say no…" Marcus sighed.

Rotom then chimed in. "She left once to search for a Kommo-o, but hasn't left the house in four days since-roto."

"ROTOM!" Moon gasped. How dare it rat her out like that!

"I thought so. It looks like you've already had breakfast, so let's get moving!" Takeba turned and started to lead the way.

Scott had his hands in his pockets. "I foresee this being a rocky road."

"Wait, where's Grace?" Ash questioned.

"Oh, that…" Marcus began.

.

.

[Approximately 1 hour ago]

"Are you sure about this?" Grace asked as she and the others traversed the streets of Hau'oli City.

"Yup! I'm gonna challenge Olivia to a battle! I feel a…kindred spirit with her." Takeba nodded. "But first, we need to pick Lillie up."

"Probably because you're both exceedingly clumsy." Elizabeth remarked. "It's incredible actually. And why Lillie?"

"I'm curious to see this for myself…" Scott mumbled. It did sound like a disaster, though.

"I have a plan." Takeba grinned.

"So it's going up in flames." Elizabeth retorted.

"Hey, you!" A familiar voice caused the group to turn around. Surprise, it was K, and she was accompanied by Tupp, Rupp, and Zipp. Team Skull yet again. "I haven't seen you in a few days! It's time to battle me again!" And of course she was talking to Grace.

"Ugh…" Grace pinched the bridge of her nose. "You again?"

"Got a new fan or something?" Takeba snickered.

"She won't leave me alone!" Grace groaned. "Take your mask off or get lost!"

"Take off the mask? She _is _crazy!" Rupp gasped at such a notion.

"These masks are the pride of Team Skull!" Tupp stated proudly.

"Ain't no way anyone would take 'em off!" Zipp said.

"Precisely!" K gave a firm nod. "Asking to take 'em off is askin' for us to take off our pride!"

"You have that?" Elizabeth quirked a brow.

"You're one to talk! Dressin' like us!" Rupp shouted. "Poser!"

"Poser!?" Elizabeth felt a little wounded after that. "I'll show you-!"

"I'll deal with them." Grace said. "This shouldn't take long. I'll catch up with you guys on Akala later."

"Yeah, battle me!" K shouted. The eagerness and demand in her voice caused Grace and Marcus to freeze.

"….." Scott narrowed his eyes. "…That voice. No, that's unlikely."

"But…" Takeba heard it too.

"There are lots of people in the world. They can sound and look the same." Scott shook his head and proceeded to walk off. "The eyes aren't the same."

"…They're not, but…" Marcus sighed. "See you soon."

"Yeah." Grace nodded as the others walked off.

[End flashback]

.

.

"That was an hour ago?" Ash tilted his head. "So why isn't she here?"

"She's at Akala already." Scott said.

The group had arrived at the small boat Takeba owned; perfect enough for their group to cross the ocean. Takeba was just getting everything ready since, well, she was the one driving. "Just give me a few minutes."

While she was preparing, Elizabeth walked over and pointed at Moon, who was still on the beach, staring at something. "Why did you bring Moon and Lillie? Even you can tell that the air around them is awkward, right?"

"Yup." Takeba nodded. "But if they just keep avoiding each other, it's only going to get worse."

"She has a reason for avoiding her." Marcus rubbed the back of his head. "That's like if I went to another world where there was another you. Might be the same, but you're not the one I know. So…it's awkward."

"That doesn't mean they can't be friends!" Takeba said. "Besides, it's bad for Moon if she keeps sitting around doing nothing. I intend to inspire her with my grand trial! And help her relationship with Lillie."

"That's a great idea!" Ash said.

"No, it's not!" Elizabeth shook her head. "We can't leave executive decisions to her!"

"Nah, watch this." Takeba pointed to the beach, where Moon was, and Lillie was approaching her. "They're going to say hi to each other, Lillie's going to ask what's wrong, and Moon will answer."

Rotom was snapping pictures as this happened. It was very curious to see if Takeba's hypothesis was correct. "Let's find out-roto!"

"Uh, by the way…" Takeba pointed to Mageara, who was told by Lillie to stay put on the ship. "Can this thing get wet, or…"

Lillie slowly approached Moon. They hadn't seen in each other in a few days, but Lillie still wanted to try and talk to her. "H-Hey, Moon."

"Ah…hi…" Moon turned to Lillie with an awkward smile.

"You're staring out at the ocean. Is something wrong?" Lillie tilted her head and Snowy did the same.

"Well…" Moon pointed at the few Mantine lined up. "I was staring at the Mantine. I kinda want to…Mantine Surf."

Cue Marcus and Elizabeth zooming over. "Hold on, are you sure that's a good idea?" Marcus asked. They were listening in. "Do you remember how to swim or anything?"

"Of course!" Moon scoffed. "Mantine surfing is fun, I remember that much! Besides, we'll keep pace with the boat. So if anything bad happens, you'll be right there."

"I think she'll be fine." Lillie said with a nod.

"Well…if you insist." Elizabeth conceded. "I'm not diving into the water after you."

"That's Mantine's job." Moon gave a cheeky grin.

.

.

The small group was off towards Akala! Takeba was steering the ship much to everyone's dismay. Granted she did know what she was doing in this case. Ash, Pikachu, Pichu, Rotom, Lillie, Snowy, Magearna, Marcus, Scott, and Elizabeth sat on the boat, staring out beside them. Moon was properly equipped and surfing on a Mantine to keep pace with them. She had some trouble getting her balance at first, but was fine. "See! I'm totally fine!"

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous watching this." Marcus sighed.

"It's finnnnne." Takeba waved a hand, keeping an eye on the ocean ahead. Akala wasn't far away, so the trip wouldn't be that long.

Little did they know that a large Magikarp robot was trailing them from the depths of the ocean. Jessie, James, and Meowth were tailing the group underwater, peddling to keep the machine going forward. It was an exhausting ordeal. "The twerps are going to Akala, are they? We'll be sure to beat them this time!" Jessie said while huffing and puffing.

"Why couldn't we modify the machine to run on electricity instead?" James asked while peddling his hardest.

"Even with all the money that pink twerp gave us, we're just short…" Meowth sighed. Takeba's unintentional funding did support them, but it wasn't enough for them to do anything substantial just yet. So they had to make due with what they had.

"It looks like a wave is coming." Scott said, gesturing to the incoming big wave.

Moon stared at it and had an idea. "Mantine! Let's go!"

"Wait, don't!" Marcus waved his hands frantically, but Moon was going for it.

Mantine rode up the wave before launching itself into the air. Moon used this chance to perform a Starmie 720 on the first try, sticking the landing with a wide grin on her face. "Woo!" The series of turns and flips required to pull this off all happened so fast the others were shock. "That was awesome!"

"Wow, she did it!" Lillie said with a wide smile. Snowy and Magearna made noises of excitement.

"Once more!" Moon told Mantine. It complied with her wish and hit the next wave. After leaping into the air once more off the wave, Mantine performed three front flips in a row, ending with a Primarina Twist with a perfect landing. "Woohoo!"

"You're a natural, Moon!" Ash exclaimed.

"Pichu!" Pichu was waving at its trainer. It was having fun just watching her.

"I wanna see!" Takeba turned her head back to look.

"Last one!" Moon told Mantine. They hit the biggest wave, soaring high into the air. Mantine spun in all directions, performing the legendary Over-the-Gyarados spin! Anyone who kept up with Mantine Surfing knew this move was near impossible to pull off unless you were extremely skilled! Only the best of the best could perform this move. It caught so much attention that other swimmers and people out on Ride Pokémon took notice and were in awe. Naturally, Moon stuck the landing and held a wide grin. "Nailed it!"

"Woo!" The group was applauding Moon's performance. They were concerned at first, but it looked like she genuinely had it covered.

Rotom snapped a few pictures, especially of Moon's more stylish tricks. "That was amazing-roto! I didn't know she could do the Over-the Gyarados!"

"She must be an ace in her world." Scott surmised.

"I haven't seen her smile like that." Lillie said quietly. It was nice to see Moon smiling after the events of the last few days.

.

.

After a short trip across the waters of Alola, the group arrived at Heahea City. Moon was still buzzing from the Mantine Surfing. "Ah! That was so much fun!"

"You were killing it out there!" Takeba pumped a fist into the air. "I knew bringing you along was a good idea. I wanna try it next!"

"You'll fall." Elizabeth said.

"And we need someone to drive the boat." Marcus added.

"Ah." Takeba felt shot down, but they weren't wrong.

Grace applauded Moon's performance. "I happened to see you guys from the beach. Not bad, Moon!"

"Ehehe…" Moon rubbed the back of her head.

"So what happened with those Team Skull thugs?" Scott questioned.

"They got away. That girl won't tell me her name, still. Those other three punks weren't helpful either." The brunette sighed, brushing her hair behind her ear.

"Oh, you made it." That voice came from Olivia, who planned to meet with Takeba. "You wanted to take an Island Trial, is that i-" And before she could finish, she missed a step and fell over. "oof!"

"Oh no! Let me help you!" Takeba went to help Olivia up, and guess what? She fell too. The two of them were side by side, swirls in their eyes from their terrible tumbles.

"_They really are too similar…" _Everyone thought.

Olivia and Takeba both stood up, trying to play their terrible tumbles off. "A-Anyway!" Olivia began. "There are three trials you can take in three locations: Lush Jungle, Wela Volcano, and Brooklet Hill. Each one has a different trial for you to undertake. You only need to complete one to have a battle with me."

"I haven't seen Wela Volcano's trial…" Ash muttered. He had undertaken, or at least seen most of the trials Alola had to offer.

"Hmmm…" Takeba rocked her head back and forth. "Wela Volcano sounds like a fire type trial. I could venture into the unknown with Blastoise...I chose Lush Jungle!" Everyone just stared at Takeba, unable to follow her decision making or logic.

"I've never seen a faster 180." Elizabeth sighed. This was going to be a long day.

.

.

Next Time: Lush Jungle Showdown!


	20. Chapter 20: Lush Jungle Showdown

Takeba's goal was to take on the Lush Jungle trial. One would think she could do this on her own, but she wanted to drag Ash, Moon, Lillie, Marcus, Grace, Scott, and Elizabeth into this. While making way towards the jungle, Lillie quietly leaned to the side to whisper to Moon. "Do you know why she wanted us to come…?"

Moon shook her head, not quite looking at Lillie. "No…she just made me come along."

"I see…" Lillie let out a quiet sigh. She was still trying to figure out the inner workings of Takeba's mind, but she wasn't the only one who couldn't. "A-Also, you were amazing out there on Mantine!"

An embarrassed blush appeared on Moon's cheeks. Now she couldn't even look in Lillie's direction and simply looked away. "T-Thanks…it just came naturally, I guess."

Listening to Moon and Lillie talk awkwardly made Elizabeth roll her eyes. "This plan of hers is never going to work. Moon's putting up too many walls."

"Stranger things have happened…" Scott said. "But a plan of Takeba's going well? Even I can't foresee the outcome of her ideas."

"Inconsistency is still consistency…" Grace shrugged her shoulders.

Takeba leaned closer to Ash as they drew nearer to Lush Jungle. "So, Ash. What can I expect from this trial? I've read up on them, but experiencing them is a totally different story."

"They're really tough." Ash said with a firm nod. Of course he wasn't going to spoil the details, for this was Takeba's trial and she had to deal with it in her own way. "But I'm positive you can pull it off!"

"Hm. That didn't help at all." Takeba pouted. Not the answer she was hoping for.

"Were you trying to get him to spill the details?" Elizabeth placed her hands on her hips. "So you're a thief _and_ a cheater?"

"Stop it! Leave me alone!" Takeba huffed. "I had a good reason. I need to know if I'll be able to pull this Z-move off…" The Z-ring she stole from the Team Rainbow Rocket grunt did come with a Rockinium Z. "It's been a lot harder than I thought."

.

.

[Flashback: A few days ago]

Takeba was practicing with Blastoise. She had read about the multiple poses that each type of Z move required and had been working hard to master the Rock one. Across from Blastoise was Zoroark and Elizabeth while the others watched. "Why have I been the testing dummy for the last few days!?"

"You're a reliable one!" Takeba winked before crossing her arms. "Besides, it'll be fine! I just need you to endure it!" Her Z-ring shone brightly as she began to do the pose. "Come on now…show me the strength of the crumbling earth!" Flexing her arms, she took the stance that caused the Rockinium Z to resonate with Blastoise, who let out a mighty battle cry. Blastoise lifted its arm up, chunks of rock rapidly forming together to create a small mountain overhead. _**"WORLD'S END FALL!"**_ Takeba exclaimed and Blastoise cried, sending this gigantic chunk of rock right for Zoroark!

"Did I mention that I don't like how we're the targets!?" Elizabeth shouted as the Continental Crush drew closer and closer before…it crumbled in the air, reduced to nothing more than harmless gravel. "Ah…"

"Again…" Marcus crossed his arms.

"It looked good, too…" Grace sighed. Takeba had really been giving it her all lately, but she was just unable to pull off a proper Z-Move.

"It seems she's lacking something." Scott added.

"I know." Takeba huffed while patting Blastoise on its shell. "It's not Blastoise, it's definitely me. I'm just not sure what I'm missing. Maybe the Island Trial can help me figure it out."

"You'll figure it out." Marcus said, swinging an arm around the pinkette's shoulder. "You always do."

"A little later than everyone else." Elizabeth added smugly. This just prompted Takeba to stick her tongue out immaturely.

]End flashback]

.

.

"You'll get it down! I know you can!" Ash told Takeba cheerfully.

"With practice, anyone can get a Z-move down-roto!" Rotom added.

"I believe in you as well." Lillie said with a small nod. Even though she hadn't known Takeba for very long, they were still friends. Lillie was slowly growing accustomed to this group's dynamic and could say for sure they were good people.

"…" Moon didn't say anything. She continued to feel out of place. "I hate to ask this now, but why am I here again?"

"You can't say not to the rich girl." Grace said while lifting a finger. Moon likely wouldn't believe Takeba's real reason. Besides, this reason was valid enough.

"Ugh…" Moon groaned. "Fine…"

"_Her plan's looking shakier with each minute…" _Marcus thought to himself. Takeba wanted to both inspire Moon and also mend Moon and Lillie's awkward relationship. It was a tall order for various reasons and no one was certain that Takeba could pull it off.

.

.

After the small trek, the group finally arrived in Lush Jungle. Takeba soaked in the atmosphere. "Wow! It's kind of really humid in here, huh!?"

"Yeah, but you get used to it." Ash shrugged.

"Dying…" Elizabeth was going back to suffering from the Alolan heat. Even with her sun friendly outfit, the Sinnoh native just could not withstand this warm weather.

"This is the trial site?" Marcus looked around curiously. "But what are we supposed to be looking for, exactly?"

"Good question." Grace placed her hands on her hips. "I know there's supposed to be some really strong Pokémon lurking around here, but I have no idea how to catch its attention."

That's when Takeba had yet another brilliant idea. "I got this."

"Oh no…" Moon could already sense that this would go downhill. Didn't have to know Takeba for very long to figure that out.

Takeba cupped her hands around her mouth and began to shout. "HEEEY! I'M HERE FOR THE TRIAL! COME FIGHT ME!"

"Did you have to disturb everything in the forest?" Scott questioned while covering his ears. Takeba could get really loud when she wanted to be. As such there were some Pokémon who were disturbed and tried to relocate away from the high pitched voice.

"My ears kind of hurt after that one…" Lillie frowned and Snowy let out a somewhat irritated mewl.

"Same…" Marcus sighed.

"I thought you'd be used to that by now." Takeba casually shrugged her shoulders. Her comment went over some of their heads but clearly it wasn't unnoticed.

Before anyone could respond to that comment, the rustling of leaves caught their attention. From the nearby shrubbery, a large Luranits staggered forward, standing tall over everyone. "…."

"There it is! The Totem Pokémon of Lush Jungle!" Rotom exclaimed. It had already taken pictures of this Lurantis once before.

"Whoa…that thing is massive…" Elizabeth's eyes were wide. It was very unnatural to see a Pokémon this large. "They aren't all this big, are they?"

"No, this is just a special one." Ash pointed out. "This is the trial! If you can defeat this then you can challenge Olivia!"

"All right! Stand back everyone!" Takeba said while holding out two pokeballs. Everyone stood back and prepared to watch the battle that was about to unfold. "I got this! Ditto, Blastoise, I choose you!" Those two spheres were thrown into the air, calling forth both Pokémon.

"Why are you sending out a water type against a grass type!?" Elizabeth groaned.

Lurantis was very well aware of what was about to happen. This human was challenging it! Lurantis let out a cry and prepared itself for battle, gesturing for Takeba to make the first move. "Lura!"

"Ditto, use Transform!" Ditto did just that. But it didn't turn into Lurantis…it turned into Ash's Pikachu!

"Wha!?" Ash was not expecting that.

"Pika!?" Pikachu nearly fell from Ash's shoulder.

"Now we're good to go! Ditto, use Quick Attack! Blastoise, use Hydro Pump!" Takeba commanded. Ditto sprinted forward, moving in a zigzag formation to keep its movements unpredictable. Ditto sprung forward, slamming its skull into Lurantis' chest, managing to knock it off balance. Blastoise took advantage of this and pointed a cannon forward, releasing a potent jet stream of water towards Lurantis. It was at that moment that the sun's rays intensified, so while Hydro Pump was a direct hit, the damage was reduced. "Huh?!"

The Sunny Day was the work of the Ally Castform! Its Forecast ability turned it into a fire type to match with the weather. It came to the aid of Lurantis at the last second. Castform then used Ember, spewing small, but potent flames at Ditto. It was a direct hit and Ditto was sent flying backwards from the sun boosted fire type move.

"Hey, that's no fair! Where did that thing come from!?" Takeba exclaimed.

"You were the one who started with two Pokémon…" Moon pointed out and Lillie nodded.

"Gah!" Point taken. But this just made things more challenging. Takeba smirked before extending a hand forward. "Ditto, Electroweb on Castform! Hinder its mobility!" Ditto nodded and jumped into the air, swinging its tail forward to send a web of electricity directly at Castform. This plan would have gone well had Lurantis decided to not intervene and lift an arm into the air, gathering an abundance of solar energy in the form of a blade. "Guh!?"

"Beep beep! Watch out! It's using Solar Blade!" Rotom warned.

"A sun based move?" Grace questioned and she was right. Solar Blade normally took time to charge, but with Sunny weather, it needed no time at all to unleash this attack. "Move, Takeba!"

"Eep! Watch out!" The panicking pinkette exclaimed. Lurantis brought its Solar Blade down, easily cleaving through the Electro Web while striking Blastoise and Ditto, leaving a thick cloud of smoke from impact. Takeba knew her team was durable so she continued to act with smoke as her cover. "Blastoise, Rock Tomb!" No one could actually see what was happening within the smoke, but they heard the sounds of rocks crashing into the ground. When the smoke cleared, Blastoise was seen, but Ditto wasn't.

"Where did they…?" Moon looked around.

Lurantis and Castform were just as confused. Little did they realize that Ditto was above them! Takeba had Ditto use Rock Tomb as a means to ascend to the sky. "Iron Tail!" Ditto dropped down from the sky, violently slamming its tail against Lurantis' head to force it to stagger back! The direct hit was surprisingly effective on the Totem Pokémon. "Now Blastoise, Aura Sphere!" Blastoise fired off the Aura Sphere for Castform, looking for a direct hit. Castform tried to play smart and lure it into Ditto, but Takeba saw through this ploy. "Iron Tail again!" Ditto swung its tail at Aura Sphere, redirecting it into Castform for a direct hit!

"Wow, she's really good!" Lillie said excitedly.

"I'm surprised…!" Moon added.

"She can be good when she puts her mind to it." Marcus said proudly.

"What little of a mind she has, anyway." Elizabeth quickly added.

Castform was the first to recover despite the hard hit. It flew forward, using Headbutt to knock Pikachu into Blastoise. The impact nearly sent the armored turtle backwards, but it caught Ditto and barely managed to hold its ground. This brief moment allowed Lurantis to stand up, now attacking with a full power Petal Blizzard. This Petal Blizzard swept Ditto and Blastoise away and knocked them back.

"Ah! Are you two okay?!" Takeba questioned. Ditto and Blastoise were still ready to go. "All right. These guys are tough, but we've gotten some good hits in. Just one more and we should…"

And at that moment, a powerful net wrapped around Lurantis and Castorm, tying them to a tree and prevented them from moving. This sudden interruption caused everyone's eyes to widen. "Huh!?"

"When you ask 'huh!?', the answer is quite clear, and soon you'll find out…" That voice belong to only one woman. Jessie began.

"Noble answers are what we're all about!" James continued, tossing a blue rose off into the distance.

"The peerless beauty that strikes within the heart of the forest, Jessie!"

"Still, the nobly heroic man of our times fights back against this cruel and heartless world…it's James!"

"And the combat cat is ready to back up the glorious fight! Meowth!"

"Team Rocket, let's fight!"

"That's right!"

"Wobbefett!"

"T-They're back…" Moon subconsciously took a step back. That's when Pichu, Lillie, and Snowy stood in front of her.

"Team Rocket!?" Ash narrowed his eyes. It just seemed like they couldn't leave well enough alone these days!

"Why are you here!? I'm in the middle of something!" Takeba huffed. "Let those Pokémon go now!"

"No way!" Meowth shook his head at the demands.

"We followed you here!" Jessie said proudly. "We knew you twerps were up to something, and the way we were kicked out the other day didn't sit right with us!" She then pointed at Moon. "That one there! She ruined everything!"

"Leave Moon out of this!" Lillie said.

"Moon?" James shook his head. "Regardless, we'll be taking this Totem Pokémon and Pikachu!"

"You guys know you're severely outnumbered, right?" Grace said while calling out Salamance. Marcus called out Zangoose, while Elizabeth and Scott called out Zoroark and G!Darmanitan respectively. "This isn't a fight you'll win."

Grace's confidence made Jessie smirk devilishly. "Is that so? Because we have a new prototype here with us that HQ is allowing us to test!" Just as she said that, a Pelipper flew over Lush Jungle, dropping down some off vending machine in front of the Rocket Trio. "It's here!"

"…W-What is that?" Elizabeth tilted her head.

James picked up Meowth, turned him upside down, and used the coin on his head as payment for the machine. "This is what the instructions said to do…"

"Uh…I feel like we should be stopping this?" Moon asked.

"I think so too, but I also want to see where this goes…" Scott was admittedly intrigued.

But they were getting a little too comfortable. Mimikyu was present and immediately made a beeline for Pikachu with a Wood Hammer, which the mouse dodged at the last second. Pikachu landed next to Pichu and the two of them were now staring down a very eager and enraged Mimikyu! "…Pi…" Pichu's face paled. Mimikyu was horrifying and now it had two targets it couldn't wait to crush.

After spinning Meowth around, two purple pokeballs dropped from the machine. Jessie and James both picked one and tossed it forward. "Let's see what we got!" The two exclaimed. For James, he got a Druddigon, while Jessie got an Aggron. "Oooh!"

"What the!?" Everyone's eyes went wide.

"Did they just play a lottery right in our face?!" Marcus asked.

"You guys, I'll free the Pokémon! You deal with them!" Takeba said, rushing over to Lurantis and Castform with Blastoise and Ditto.

"I don't think so!" Jessie held up the strip of paper that came with Aggron. "Aggron, use Bulldoze!" Aggron stomped on the ground with reckless abandoned. Anything on the ground was tumbling over due to its raw might. Druddigon seemed fine and just roared as it wanted a piece of the action.

"Druddigon, use Dragon Claw! Mareanie, Spike Cannon!" James commanded confidently. Of course his beloved Mareanie had to bite him affectionately before going to battle. Druddigon charged forward while Mareanie covered it with Spike Cannon!

"Salamance, Dragon Rush!" Grace commanded. Salmance cloaked its body in a fierce aura and dove towards Druddigon. The two were in a fierce power stalemate. Spike cannon made it difficult for Elizabeth and Scott to follow up. "You guys are persistent no matter what world it is, huh!?"

"Seriously!" Takeba huffed. "We just dealt with Rainbow Rocket the other day, now these clowns show up!?" She was trying to free Lurantis and Castform, but the material the net was made of was much sturdier than before. "Gah! What is this stuff made from!? Where do they get the money to buy all this!?" If only she knew.

"Clowns!?" Jessie took offense to that.

"Rainbow Rocket?" That caught James' attention, but they could deal with that later.

"Aggron, Iron Head! Mimikyu, Wood Hammer!" Jessie commanded.

"Pikachu, Iron Tail!" Ash shouted in retaliation. Pikachu swung its tail forward, colliding against Mimikyu's own for a fierce stalemate, but that didn't stop Aggron from moving forward!

Aggron was rushing towards Snowy and Pichu! "Snowy, use Powder Snow!" Lillie commanded. Snowy exhaled a fierce frost from its mouth to freeze the ground over, but Aggron just kept charging forward. "Ah!"

"Pichu, use Volt Tackle!" Pichu started rushing forward, a fierce aura of electricity flaring around its body. It slammed against Aggron's Iron Head and held fast for a few seconds before being overpowered! "Ah! Pichu!" Moon cried out as Pichu hit a tree, severely damaged from recoil and what damage Aggron dealt.

Just as Aggron neared Snowy, Zangoose appeared, swinging a Crush Claw to divert its attention. "Quick Attack!" Marcus commanded, covering Lillie and Snowy. Zangoose sprinted around Aggron, confusing the metal titan with its quick movements. "Fire Blast!" Appearing to Aggron's left; Zangoose exhaled a point blank blast of fire directly at Aggron. The result was an explosion that made the metal titan stagger back with an angry roar.

As for Druddigon, Salamance pulled away from the power struggle, only to leave the opposing dragon exposed to the other two! "Zoroark, Night Daze!" Elizabeth commanded.

"Ice Punch." Scott said calmly.

The Ice Punch came first, as Darmanitan struck Druddigon across the face. This put it off balance, leaving it open to the direct Night Daze! Despite the damage it received, it was still standing. "Wow, this new lottery may work in the future!" James said excitedly.

"Still standin' even after all dat punishment! They ain't half bad!" Meowth grinned.

"You're kiddin, did they just get lucky or something!?" Elizabeth grit her teeth in annoyance. This was becoming a problem.

"Aggron, use Metal Burst!" Jessie smirked.

"Druddigon, use Draco Meteor!" James added onto this.

"This is bad!" Grace exclaimed. Aggron's body shone brightly and it released sharp shards of metal in every direction! Metal Burst was a large counterattack, doubling the damage it just received from Fire Blast. Zangoose, Snowy, Zoroark, Salamance, and Darmanitan all received damage from this and were taken aback. What made matters worse was the Draco Meteor ascending into the air!

Ash had this covered. "Pikachu, use Electro Web!" Pikachu was about to use this web to stop the meteors from dealing damage all across Lush Jungle, but Mimikyu wasn't allowing this. It used Shadow Claw to swat Pikachu down and into a tree. "Ah!"

"Ditto, Electro Web!" Takeba exclaimed. Ditto whipped its tail forward, using Electro Web in Pikachu's place. The web wrapped around the meteor before it could explode, thus preventing the destruction.

"Kyu…" Mimikyu's cracked voice echoed as it turned, spotting yet another Pikachu. This must've been a field day.

"_I couldn't stop them before…but I can stop them now!" _ Takeba thought while glancing at her Z-ring. "I'll bet it on all this one shot!" And she crossed her arms, causing that Z-ring to shine.

"Waitwaitwaitwait!" Jessie frantically pointed at Takeba. "When did she get one of those!? Where did she get one of those!?"

"She stole it!" Elizabeth shouted. Not the time but she wasn't letting it go.

"If she thinks she can get away with pulling one over on us, she has another thing coming!" James said while sliding the Z-ring onto his wrist, glancing at Mareanie, who happily jumped forward. The Rocket Trio all did the Z-move pose for the Darknium Z, empowering Mareanie to use…

"_**BLACK HOLE ECLIPSE!"**_ A crimson black sphere rose into the sky before expanding into a dangerous black hole, threatening to pull everything nearby into its destructive radius!

"_**WORLD'S END FALL!" **_Takeba yelled as she attempted the Z-move once again with Blastoise's help. Blastoise formed a gigantic mountain with this Z-move and tossed it towards the Black Hole Eclipse in an attempt to overpower it. Everyone watched as this struggle went on and Takeba hoped it would be enough to redeem herself for her failure against Team Rocket before. Unfortunately for her, just as before, the Continental Crush broke apart! "Ah…!"

"Not again!" Marcus gasped.

"The Z-move failed! But just barely!" Rotom reported in a panic. Takeba was so close, but she just barely missed whatever mark she needed!

"Haha! Looks like we win this time!" Meowth laughed.

Not while Ash had anything to say about it! "Lycanroc, let's go!" Ash called out Lycanroc as quickly as he could. "Takeba, watch me!"

"Huh!?" Takeba was a little heartbroken that she failed again, but Ash clearly intended to inspire her with what he was about to do.

"You put all your trust and faith into your Pokémon…" Ash began as he swapped out his current Z-crystal for the Lycanrocnium-Z. He then started to do the poses to let that power resonate with him. "Feel the Z-power move through you and put it all into your Pokémon! Then when you work together to give it all you've got! Lycanroc, use _**SPLINTERED STORMSHARDS!"**_

"Hey, what makes you think you'll get away with that!?" Jessie scoffed at Ash's audacity! "Aggron, Flash Cannon!"

"Druddigon, use Focus Blast!" James added. The two attacks were fired directly at Lycanroc to stop this nonsense.

"Salamance, Fire Blast!"

"Zoroark, Flamethrower!"

Salamance and Zoroark exhaled powerful bursts of flames that merged together. This white hot funnel of flames collided with Focus Blast and Flash Cannon, causing them to explode on the spot. They wouldn't be reaching Lycanroc today. "Sorry, but you can't forget about us." Grace said smugly.

"Mimikyu…!" Jessie panicked. Unfortunately it was too late.

Lycanroc howled as the rocks it summoned allowed it to perch on a plateau. It then jumped into the air, numerous sharp rocks all pointed down at the Black Hole Eclipse. The wolf of dusk then dove down with the rocks at its sides, breaking through the Black Hole Eclipse while the sharp rocks struck Team Rocket's Pokémon, heavily damaging them in the process of a large explosion. When Lycanroc landed, Team Rocket's Pokémon were severely injured! "Nice job, Lycanroc!"

"…." Moon stared in awe. She had been useless the whole time since Pichu went down, but watching all this go down was amazing to her.

"They're all really amazing, aren't they?" Lillie said with a soft smile. "I wish I could be as strong as them…"

The Splintered Stormshards also freed Lurantis and Castform, meaning that Team Rocket was surrounded on all sides. "You made a mistake coming here today." Takeba said. "What did I tell you about a girl and her vacation?"

"Next time you should plan your attack more efficiently." Scott said. "I was barely needed here…"

"Pikachu, send them flying with Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded. Pikachu happily agreed and jumped into the air, preparing to fry Team Rocket with a Thunderbolt…!

And at that moment, from above, Bewear dropped down from above, stunning everyone. Bewear wrapped its arms around Team Rocket and propelled itself into the air just as fast as she came, way before the Thunderbolt could even hit them! "What even _is _this feeling…" Team Rocket mumbled as they were carried off into the distance with a single bound.

"….What the heck was that?" Elizabeth pointed to the sky. "We're on a different island, where did that thing even come from!?"

"…That Bewear is a special case-roto." Rotom said.

"…Well, that was a distraction." Grace sighed before turning to Moon and Lillie. "You two okay? Sorry if we hogged all the action."

"We're okay!" Lillie said. "I would've just gotten in the way."

"Pichu did what it could." Moon said with a slight smile. She fed her partner an Oran Berry.

.

"Now then!" Takeba and Lurantis returned to their battle. After confirming the Totem Pokémon was okay, it was time to resume! "Ditto, use Thunderbolt!" Ditto jumped into the air, releasing a potent bolt of lightning at Lurantis. It was a direct hit and…Lurantis went down after that. "…Huh?"

"What?" Everyone else seemed just as surprised.

"I-It's over just like that?" Moon tilted her head. "That was a little…anticlimactic."

"You're telling me." Grace said.

"Hey, what's going on?" Takeba walked over to Lurantis, huffing as it stood back up. It was a lot taller than her so she had to crane her neck up to look at it. "Did I just win like that?" Lurantis nodded. It also made a few noises to converse, but naturally it went over Takeba's head. "Huh?"

"…I believe it's saying that you were going to win the battle anyway." Scott said. "It saw your prowess and realized that all it could do was give you a proper fight until Team Rocket interrupted. And then, it felt inspired by your need to protect your friends, even though you couldn't muster a Z-move properly. As a tourist, you've certainly touched this Pokémon."

"Well, look at you." Marcus said with a grin. "Making moves already. You've cleared your trial before it began."

"Congratulations!" Lillie exclaimed.

"Not bad." Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders.

"That means you can take on Olivia now!" Ash told Takeba. "Your Grand Trial is the real test! Do you think you can handle it?"

Takeba paused for a moment. This wasn't quite the result she wanted, but even Lurantis was saying that she had won the fight. "I still have some training to do. But this was a good first step forward. I'll master this Z-move and then, Olivia, I'm coming for you!"

.

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Next Time: Takeba vs. Olivia.


	21. Chapter 21: Takeba vs Olivia

Takeba's Grand Trial was set to begin within an hour or so. As such she made sure to contact everyone and make sure they were present to watch. Prior to her match beginning, she was once again attempting to master the use of a Z-move with Blastoise, but again, she came up short. Continental Crush failed yet again, causing the pinkette to groan. "Again…"

"Don't feel so bad!" Mallow said with an encouraging smile. "It took me a while to use a Z-move as well. It doesn't come to everyone easily."

"Don't feel terrible." Moon said, sitting off a bit away from everyone else. Lillie wanted to sit close to her but opted not to. "I messed up a Z-move too recently. It was almost bad."

"Moon…" Lillie frowned. Was that still bothering her?

"I was hoping that I'd have this mastered before I fought Olivia." Takeba admitted, patting Blastoise on the shell. "I know she's gonna use a Z-move and I'm already at a major disadvantage…"

"You'll be fine!" Ash said with a reassuring smile. "I've seen you battle and I think you have what it takes."

"I've seen her battle and I'm doubtful." Elizabeth said.

"Ahem." Grace jabbed Elizabeth's side with her elbow.

"We believe in you!" Lana exclaimed.

"Yeah, you can do it!" Sophocles agreed.

"Your chances of success appear high!" Rotom said while lifting one of its arms up.

"If your battle spirit burns as hot as Wela Volcano, you can pull off the win." Kiawe gave his bit of wisdom.

Marcus then wrapped an arm around Takeba's shoulder, lips curving up to a soft smile. "You got this."

A slight blush crept on the pinkette's lips and she gave a slight nod. "I-I'll do my best…!"

Elizabeth made way over to Scott, who was keeping to himself. "Soo…you know how that battle's gonna end, right? Am I right?"

Scott let out a slight chuckle. "Perhaps. But you mustn't forget that Takeba has the sheer advantage of unpredictably, though not in the way that Ash does. So even if I've forseen an outcome, it may not be correct. She could win, she could lose. Only she has the power to make either outcome happen."

"I…see." Elizabeth let out a sigh. "I guess we're in for a show one way or another…"

.

.

The time finally came for the Grand Trial. Olivia was waiting for Takeba and the others at the Ruins of Life, which would be the battleground for the Grand Trial. The Island Kahuna stood on one side of the field while Takeba took the other, greeting the challenger with a confident smile. The rest of the group sat in the spectator seats just outside of the arena. In this case, the judge for this bout was going to be Kiawe. "I've been waiting for you, Takeba. Now that you've undergone an Island Trial, I hope you understand what it takes to use a Z-move and embrace Alola's culture."

"Well, that Island Trial did open my eyes." Takeba said with a nod. She wasn't going to admit that she hadn't mastered the Z-move yet, but was embracing Alola's culture. "And I believe I'm ready for this battle."

"Wow, it's almost like she's a completely different person…" Moon whispered to Ash. She had seen Olivia trip and stumble so many times that watching her now was a bit surreal.

"Olivia may be a little…clumsy, but she's great at what she does." Ash said with a goofy grin. He was excited to watch this battle pan out.

"That's wonderful. Let's see how much you've learned, then." Olivia tossed not one, but two Pokeballs into the air. "Lycanroc, Probopass, it's time for battle!" On that cue, Olivia's Lycanroc (day), and Probopass emerged in a flush of neon blue light!

"A double battle?" Moon blinked.

"It's just like Ash's trial…" Mallow said quietly. Olivia only did the double battle with Ash because he had already completed a Grand Trial prior to fighting her. What was Olivia thinking?

"Hm…" Scott mumbled.

"You sure she can do this?" Elizabeth glanced at Marcus.

"I'm sure she has a plan." Marcus said firmly

"_I don't have a plan." _Takeba thought. "Okay…rock types…" Takeba said to herself. "Blastoise, Honchkrow, it's all on you!" Takeba called out her trusty companions. What sort of team would they make? She had yet to find out.

Kiawe looked between the two combatants. "Are both trainers ready? Takeba has the first move as the challenger! Begin!"

"Honchkrow, use Drill Peck on Lycanroc! Blastoise, Aura Sphere on Probopass!" Her two Pokémon did as commanded. Honchkrow flew into the air, spinning its body around while soaring towards Lycanroc, taking the shape of a drill as it did so. As for Blastoise, it took aim at Probopass, firing off a tracking Aura Sphere for effective damage.

"Lycanroc, Drill Run! Probopass, Zap Cannon!" Olivia commanded. Lycanroc jumped into the air while twisting its body around, clashing with the incoming Drill Peck! Probopass had the mini units around its body swirl around before firing off a Zap Cannon that exploded against the Aura Sphere. Drill Run and Drill Peck ended in a clash with both Pokémon being forced backwards. "Now, Accelrock!" As soon as Lycanroc landed on all fours, it sped forward yet again, slamming into Honchkrow before it could react, landing a super effective hit that forced it onto the ground. "Magnet Bomb!" A silver orb appeared in front of Probopass's nose and the eyes of the mini-noses began to glow orange. The three Mini-Noses then flew off towards Blastoise and Honchkrow to explode.

"Blastoise, Rapid Spin!" Blastoise tucked its body into its shell, spinning around rapidly as the Mini-Noses came in hot. Using its rotation to gain speed, Blastoise shielded Honchkrow by spinning in front of it, deflecting the Mini-Noses and caused them to explode harmlessly in the air before they returned to Probopass. "And Mirror Move!" Honchkrow recovered by this point. Its eyes shone as it locked n Lycanroc, making use of its last move: Accelrock.

"Huh!?" Olivia wasn't expecting this. Honchkrow sped off, slamming its body into Lycanroc's frame with enough power to force it to skid backwards several feet. A smile then appeared on the Kahuna's lips. Takeba was certainly no pushover. "You're pretty good. But let's see how you handle this! Accelrock!" Lycanroc sprinted off once more, but it had no target in mind, instead it kept dashing around Honchkrow and Blastoise. "Double Team!" And within a fraction of a second, illusions of Lycanroc appeared around Takeba's Pokémon, making it impossible to discern where the real one was!

"Ah…?" Takeba's green eyes frantically looked around.

"I lost them…" Moon admitted.

"Me too…" Sophocles said.

"Stone Edge!" Lycanroc and its illusions all howled, slamming their front legs onto the ground. This caused azure stones to rise from the ground in all directions, all closing in on Honchkrow and Blastoise. The trick was that only one was doing the attacking, but Takeba was unable to figure out in time which one it was, so that meant Blastoise and Honchkrow ate the Stone Edge.

"Oh no!" Takeba gasped.

"Now, Rock Slide!" Olivia was going to keep this momentum up. Lycanroc jumped up, creating numerous rocks around its body, firing it down at Honchkrow and Blastoise.

"Psychic!" Takeba shouted. Honchkrow's eyes shone bright blue as it used telekinetic abilities to take a hold of the incoming Rock Slide. Before Lycanroc could even land, Honchkrow returned the Rock Slide to the sender, pelting Lycanroc with numerous rocks with such force it was sent crashing into the ground. "Got it!"

"Lycanroc!" Olivia was worried. Lycanroc did take some heavy damage but it was all right. "Zap Cannon!" Probopass took aim at Honchkrow, firing off a potent Zap Cannon that would likely end the raven's run in this battle if it hit.

"Watch out!" Takeba shouted worriedly. Honchkrow was barely able to dodge the Zap Cannon. And it destroyed the nearby rock face.

"Giga Impact!" Probopass then went on a full power, full throttle charge at Blastoise, and an intimidating aura swirling around its body as nothing would stop it!

"Hydro Pump and Rapid Spin, go!" Blastoise tucked its body into its shell yet again; jet streams of water shooting out from each opening as it propelled itself forward, clashing against the Giga Impact. Blastoise won the exchange, pushing and damage Propobass backwards. As a plus, due to Giga Impact's drawback, Propobass was now unable to move for a little bit! "Perfect! Now, Rock Tomb!" Blastoise let out a battle cry as rocks started dropping from the sky, intending to crush Lycanroc and Probopass!

There was nothing that Olivia could do to help Probopass, but she did have an idea. A slight smirk curled up onto her lips as she raised a hand into the air! "Jump!" Lycanroc did just that, leaping into the air, using the falling Rock Tomb as platforms to ascend higher into the air while Probopass took the hits.

"Ah!?" Takeba's jaw dropped.

"Hey, that's…!" Ash's eyes widened. He recalled Lycanroc, when it was a Rockruff, performing the same maneuver when he fought Olivia. Was she taking a page from his book?

"Drill Run!" Lycanroc descended from above, spinning into a drill yet again. It flew past Honchkrow and slammed directly into Blastoise for a direct hit, causing the armored shell pokmeon to stagger back from the damage.

"Gh! Mirror Move!" Takeba commanded once more. Honchkrow mirrored Lycanroc's attack, acting similarly to Drill Peck, only the ground type move was more effective and dealt noticeable damage to Lycanroc as it was pushed back.

"She's making good use of Mirror Move!" Lana clasped her hands together.

About this time, Probopass was able to move again. As soon as Olivia noticed, she grinned. It was time to wrap this battle up. "Stealth Rock." Propobass let out a cry as multiple rocks appeared on the battlefield, but not in the conventional way that Stealth Rock was used. A ring of stalagmites appeared around Blastoise and Honchkrow, entrapping them within the center of the arena.

"What the…" Elizabeth's eyes widened. "That's how she uses it!?"

"It looks like a nasty trap." Scott remarked.

"Oh, it is!" Ash said with a nod. After all he experienced it firsthand.

"Uh…" Takeba wasn't sure what she was in for right now.

And Olivia was going to use her opponent's hesitation to her advantage. "Magnet Bomb!" Just like before, the Mini-Noses flew off independently from Probopass, flying into the ring of rocks to attack Honchkrow and Blastoise.

"Watch out!" Takeba cried. Honchkrow couldn't fly away, because as it did, a Mini-Nose exploded in front of it, cutting off its escape round. The explosion sent it into one of the rocks, where mere contact with it caused another explosion to damage Honchkrow. "Oh crap!" Now it all hit Takeba at once and she realized the situation she was in.

"What is your next move?" Olivia questioned as the Mini Noses continued to assault Takeba's pokemon, hardly giving them the time to act.

"This! Mirror Move!" Once again, Mirror Move was in play. Feathers dropped from Honchkrow's body, moving in a manner that mimicked the Magnet Bomb. Several feathers clashed with the Mini-Noses, forcing them to retreat. Other feathers slipped through the Stealth Rock to strike Probopass and deal some damage. Both sides' were looking a little worse for wear, but Takeba was still at a disadvantage due to her current predicament. "Gotta get out of this. Blastoise-!"

"Rock Slide!" Lycanroc was above! It was sending numerous rocks down onto Blastoise and Honchkrow! These rocks didn't hit, but it did disrupt the defensive formation they had.

"Gah! No…" Takeba grit her teeth. This was getting out of her control.

And at that moment, Olivia's Z-ring began to shine. "You're a very strong battler. But it seems you still have some hesitation within you." One leg slid out to the side and she took a firm stance, preparing to unleash the Z-move that would end it all. "You told me you wanted to take this Grand Trial and make use of Alola's culture. Why is that? What reason do you have for fighting so hard? I can see in your eyes that you're serious, but if you can't bring that determination out within your Pokémon, why are you fighting? This trial is to test the bonds between you and your Pokémon. Do you think you can win with an attitude like that!?"

"Wow, she really laid into her…" Marcus said with a sweat drop. But he was worried about what Takeba was going to do.

"I…" Takeba stared at her Z-ring. "I haven't been able to help anyone for a long time now." The heiress said. "I'm clumsy, forgetful, and I wasn't strong enough to save a friend who became important to me quickly.' That person in question was no one other than Kasumi. "Even earlier I forgot something important and it almost got my friend's Pokémon stolen…but despite that, I still want to do what I can! My pokemon and I need the strength to fight! Alola's going to be in trouble soon, and that's why I need to pull my weight. Even if this Alola isn't my home, I still want to protect it with everything I've got!"

"….!" Moon gasped a bit.

"If that's your reason, then let's see if you can bring it to fruition with the power you have now!" By this point, Olivia had finished her pose, sending all the Z-power into Lycanroc, who took high into the skies, gathering rocks that took the shape of a small mountain over its head. _**"WORLD' S END FALL!"**_Lycanroc howled as it tossed this crushing landmass down towards Honchkrow and Blastoise.

"It's now or never…" Takeba crossed her arms over her chest, her Z-ring shining brightly. Everyone remained silent as she once again attempted to use a Z-move. "I'm not going to get any stronger if I keep blaming myself for simple things. I have to protect everything I have with me now. So Blastoise, please, let's combine our strength the only way we know how!" Her pose completed and she sent the Z-power into Blastoise. (play, Your Adventure)

"She's going for it…!" Mallow gasped.

"Can she do it…?" Kiawe questioned to himself.

"Based on her attempts before, there's a 50% chance of this working-roto!" Rotom declared.

All of her training in Alola led to this very moment. This was now or never! Blastoise let out a battle cry as it formed its own large mass of rock over its head. _**"WORLD'S END FALL!" **_The two Z-moves clashed against one another. It was a fierce struggle…that ended in a stalemate. Both attacks exploded violently against one another, neither beating out the other. In the end, the Stealth Rocks were destroyed by the explosion, thus freeing Blastoise and Honchkrow, who ended up receiving no damage, just as Lycanroc and Probopass did. "I-It worked!"

"She did it…!" Ash cheered.

"You can do it, Takeba!" Lillie shouted alongside the others.

As rocks fell from the sky, Olivia held a soft smile. "So that's the power you have to offer."

"Yeah! And we're just getting started! Blastoise, Hydro Pump!" Blastoise took aim at both Probopass and Lycanroc, firing off two strong jet streams of water towards the two rock types!

"Probopass, Zap Cannon!" Probopass fired off another powerful electrical sphere to combat the Hydro Pump. The two attacks exploded in the middle, thus creating a cloud of smoke. "Magnet Bomb!"

"Rapid Spin!" Just as the Mini-Noses came flying in for a third time, Blastoise's rapid rotation repelled them and it spun closer to Probopass, slamming into the metal giant to push it backwards and rebounded to gain distance.

"Stone Edge!" Lycanroc howled, slamming its front legs onto the ground, sending sharp rocks from the ground towards Blastoise.

"Mirror Move!" Honchkrow landed on the ground, slamming its talons on the arena. This prompted a Stone Edge to clash with Lycanroc's, resulting in an explosion that spared both parties from damage.

"Brave Bird!" A fierce, fiery blue aura formed around Honchkrow's body as it dove towards Lycanroc at a dangerously low altitude.

"Double Team!" Just before Lycanroc was hit, it split into multiple copies of itself. What Honchkrow hit was nothing more than an illusion, much to Takeba's dismay.

"You're not getting away from me again! Aura Sphere!" Blastoise fired off one Aura Sphere to track down Lycanroc, and if that wasn't enough. "And Mirror Move!" Honchkrow did the same thing! Two Aura Spheres were flying towards the real Lycanroc.

"Magnet Bomb!" Mini-Noses flew to the rescue, flying in front of Lycanroc to shield it from the two Aura Spheres that aimed for its head. The Mini-Noses were sent flying, but they did their job. "Giga Impact!" Probopass' target was Blastoise once again!

"Let's take it out! Rapid Spin and Aura Sphere!" Blastoise tucked its body into its shell once more, this time coating itself from the aura of Aura Sphere! It collided against Probopass, the powers of these two titans causing an explosion that blew both of them backwards in a KO'ed state. The damage they sustained finally got the best of them.

"Both Probopass and Blastoise are unable to battle!" Kiawe exclaimed. As soon as he did, the two trainers returned their Pokémon, leaving on Honchkrow and Lycanroc on the field. The next exchange was without a doubt, the end of the battle.

"Brave Bird!"

"Accelrock!" Both Pokémon were off in streaks of brown and blue light. They continuously clashed against one another, shockwaves booming out from each collision. Those watching could barely follow the action with their eyes and could only go by the sounds and sights of the nearby destruction. The two eventually entered a stalemate in the center of the arena, both sides attempting to overpower the other and finish this battle!

That's when Takeba finally decided to bring out her ace in the hole. "Finish it with Superpower!"

"What, is she crazy!? All that recoil might finish Honchkrow off!" Elizabeth said.

Takeba was well aware of the risk. If this failed, she lost. But she had to put it all on this gamble. Honchkrow's body bulked up as it summoned strength beyond strength. This was allowing it to push against Lycanroc. Olivia's eyes widened as this situation didn't look good for her. "Ah…!" And with one final cry, Honchkrow overpowered Lycanroc, crushing it into the ground with all the power it could muster. Honchkrow sustained heavy recoil as a result, and as the smoke and dust cleared…Lycanroc was defeated.

"Lycanroc is unable to battle! That means the winner is challenger Takeba!" And as Kiawe said this there was a huge grin on her face.

"She won…" Grace was pretty amazed.

"I knew she could do it. I never had a doubt my mind." Marcus said proudly.

"So why were you sweating near the end there?" Elizabeth pointed out.

"Woo! She did it!" Mallow cheered.

"So my initial thought was right." Scott said nonchalantly.

"She overcame the odds! I must update this!" Rotom was updating the information he had on Takeba after this battle.

"That was an intense battle. I was on the edge of my seat." Lana was, quite literally, on the edge of the bench.

"I couldn't even blink!" Sophocles said.

"That was…kind of amazing." Moon admitted quietly.

Lillie stared at Takeba. Something about her words and the way Moon reacted made her tilt her head. "…I wonder…"

"Honchkrow! Blastoise, you both were amazing out there! Thank you so much!" Takeba went to hug Honchkrow, but it started pecking at her instead, this time out of happiness. "Ow! Ow!"

"Congrats on clearing your Grand Trial!" Ash said with a huge grin. "You were awesome out there, both of you!"

"Indeed, you were very strong." Olivia retuned Lycanroc, approaching Takeba with a box. "Since you already have a Rockinum-Z, I've decided to reward you by allowing you to take a Z-crystal of your choosing….!" Near the end of that sentence, Olivia tripped and started to fall. "A-Ah…!" And she collapsed, the box flying into the air, numerous Z-crystals spilling out in the process.

"Oh no! I got them…!" Takeba said, but we all know she didn't. Right after Olivia tripped, she did as well.

"…." Everyone watched in stunned silence. How these two klutzes continued to fall on each other amazed them.

Honchkrow grabbed a Flyinium-Z with its beak, landing in front of Takeba after making the executive decision. "…I uh…I guess I'm taking this one…hahaha…"

"G-Good choice…!" Olivia looked up at Takeba with an embarrassed smile.

"Just like that, huh?" Marcus sighed and helped Takeba up, while Kiawe helped Olivia up.

"Well, now that you've completed your Grand Trial, what's next?" Grace asked.

"Uhm…" Moon mumbled.

Ash heard Moon's quiet voice, causing him and Pikachu to tilt their heads. "What's up, Moon?"

Moon shifted around a bit awkward. "…I know I've done the Island Challenge before, but I…I want to do a Grand Trial on Melemele. I-It might help me remember some things…!" She blurted out. Watching Takeba battle inspired her to do the same again. She didn't want to remain weak and useless when trouble was brewing within Alola.

"I think that's a great idea." Olivia said with a soft smile. "I wish you the best of luck, Moon."

"R-Right…" Moon gave a slight nod.

Ash was pumped. "All right! When we get back, we'll start training right away!"

"Hey, count me in too!" Kiawe didn't want to miss this.

"…Looks like her plan is working so far…" Grace said, surprised that Takeba's idea of inspiring Moon was actually taking effect.

"Of course it is." Takeba said smugly.

"Hey, be careful about how much hot air you pump into your head. At this rate it may bust." Elizabeth replied with the same amount of smugness.

"T-that's not faaaaair!" Takeba whined. It did give everyone a good laugh, though. In the end, Takeba was filled with more confidence than before. She firmly believed she had the strength to pull her weight in the trials that were to come. And now, it would be Moon's turn to do the same.

.

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Next Time: Moon's Trial.


	22. Chapter 22: Moon's Trial

It was a bright and early morning in Alola, just a day or so after Takeba's grand Trial. Ash, Moon, Kukui, Burnet, and their Pokémon were all eating breakfast. As Moon chowed down, she had a thought, recalling something she saw on TV the other day. An old Masked Royal bout that got her thinking. "Oh! I just remembered something!"

"What is it?" Kukui asked curiously.

With her fork, the otherworldly girl pointed at Kukui. "You're the Masked Royal!" There was an awkward silence that followed. Moon's eyes widened and she frantically waved her hands. "Oh, wait…! I-I mean…!"

Kukui and the others ended up laughing at Moon's reaction. "No, you're right." At this point, after the Pokémon League, everyone knew his identity. "There's no need to worry. I've been unmasked already."

"Huh? Everyone knows?" Moon tilted her head.

"Did the me from your Alola tell you that?" Kukui was curious now. Prior to the incident at the Pokémon League, the only people who knew of his identity as the Masked Royal were Faba and Molayne. Ash's Incineroar as well, but it figured that out when it was just a Litten.

Moon shook her head. "Not exactly. The people don't know you…er, the other you is the Masked Royal, but I was handed the mask and was told to give it to the Professor, so…you know, the pieces just kinda fit together."

"Oh, is the other me a big fan of him as well!?" Burnet was practically swooning already. To be married to the Masked Royal!

Moon nodded. "Mhm. Although she doesn't know she's married to him." She then pointed at Rotom. "I had a Rotom-dex, too, but…clearly it's not with me."

"I would've loved to compare data with another Rotom-roto!" Rotom said. Its goal was to be the ultimate Pokedex after all.

"Your Alola really does sound a lot like ours." Ash said. It amazed him how many similarities they kept finding the more Moon remembered.

Although Moon knew what Ash was trying to say, she kind of took it the wrong way. "Mhm…" For a brief moment, she was reminded that she didn't exist here. A frown tugged her lips, but she forced a smile in its stead. "Anyway, I'm gonna take the Island Trial today."

"We wish you the best of luck!" Burnet said with a soft smile.

"Pichu and I can do this!" As Moon said this, Pichu jumped onto her shoulder and nuzzled its cheek onto hers. "Ash's has been really helpful with training."

"It's not a problem." Ash gave a cheeky grin. "Although we should be a little more careful with Thunder…" A quick flashback to when Pichu unintentionally shocked both Ash and Moon. They were down for a little bit after that.

"You two have been getting along rather well." Kukui pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess so." Moon glanced at Ash. "I guess it's because I don't really remember meeting anyone like him. I feel really bad for saying this, but I don't think you exist in my Alola, which makes it easier for me to talk to you. Everyone else is the same, so…I guess we're kinda similar?"

Before Ash could give a response, the doorbell rang. "Oh, I got it!" Hopping from his chair, Ash rushed to the door, where he was greeted by Kiawe, Mallow, and Lillie. "Hey guys!"

"Alola!" The three of them said in unison.

"We wanted to watch Moon's trial!" Kiawe said with a grin. He did say he didn't want to miss it.

"Lana is stuck babysitting her sisters and Sophocles, said he was busy, so we're going to support her in their stead!" Mallow explained.

"Also, Takeba and the others said they were busy helping her train, so they can't make it today." Lillie passed the message along. "But they're rooting for her regardless!"

Hearing all the commotion at the door, Moon arrived, waving to everyone. "A-Alola." She was a little hesitant because of Lillie, but still made somewhat of an attempt to be friendly. "Are you all here to support me?"

"That's right!" Kiawe said, eyes blazing. "We're here to support your battle spirit so that it burns as strongly as Wela Volcano!"

"Okay then!" Moon pumped both fists into the air. "I'll show you all what Pichu and I can do!"

"Good luck!" Kukui and Burnet exclaimed as Ash and others went off!

.

.

Verdant Cavern, the site of Melemele's Island Trial. Ash, Moon, Lillie, Rotom, Mallow, and Kiawe arrived at the cavern. They had a guest accompanying them that they encountered on the way there: Hau. He was curious to see what Moon could do since she was planning to challenge his grandfather. "Mhm…" Moon glanced around the cavern. "It's the same."

"What's the same?" Hau asked. He wasn't exactly in the know just yet.

"Oh, right…" Moon let out a quiet sigh. "This cavern looks like how I remember it."

Ash then leaned in to whisper to Hau. "Moon's actually from another Alola that's very similar to our own. The people and places are the same."

Hau's eyes widened. That suddenly explained the awkward situation the other day. "Oh! I'm not making things awkward for you, am I, Moon!?"

"No, no…" Moon waved a hand, letting out a nervous laugh. "It's fine. _You're_ not the problem." Who was the problem? Herself and…

Lillie was looking around Verdant Cavern, head tilting to the side ever so slightly. "I've heard that there have been some disturbances around this cavern recently. That wild Kommo-o the people are talking about…the one that saved Moon and I might be around here."

"Ah!" Moon's eyes widened. "I hope so! I've been worried sick about it since that Shadow Pokémon attacked.

"A wild Kommo-o? Here?" Hau was understandably doubtful on this. "You can't even find a Jangmo-o here."

"Hau is right!" Rotom added.

"There is one here." Lillie said firmly. "It saved Moon and I."

"I hope it's not hurt or anything." Mallow frowned.

"It must be worried about Moon, too." Kiawe crossed his arms.

"I'll make sure to look for it again after this trial. But for now…" Moon cupped her hands around her mouth. "HEEEY! GUMSHOOS!" There was silence for a second. That silence was then interrupted by a Yungoos and a Gumshoos, but not the Totem that Moon was looking for. "Er…"

"I think you'll have to beat them first if you want the Totem." Mallow pointed out.

Moon took a quick glance at Pichu, who hopped off her shoulder and got into a battle ready stance. "Okay, bring it on! We'll take you both!" The Yungoos and Gumshoos responded to this and prepared to fight.

"Good luck, Moon!" Lillie cheered.

"You can do it!" Ash, Mallow, Kiawe, and Hau all exclaimed.

"Pichu, Quick Attack!" Pichu darted forward, its small size making it a difficult opponent to track. It moved in a zig-zag pattern, keeping its movements a mystery to Yungoos and Gumshoos. Pichu then slammed its head against Gumshoos' chest, pushing it away with a surprising amount of power. "Now, Iron Tail!" On a dime, Pichu rebounded off of Gumshoos, whipping its tail at Yungoos for a direct hit!

"Wow, look at her go!" Mallow beamed.

Yungoos and Gumshoos recovered from Pichu's attacks before retaliating. They then moved in their own zig zag pattern before stopping, raking their claws against the ground to kick up a large amount of sand! It was a dual Sand Attack that blinded Pichu for a bit. "Pichu!" Moon cried out in worry. Yungoos then struck Pichu with a Tackle, while Gumshoos followed up with a strong Bite! Both attacks dealt a lot of damage and Pichu was thrown back as a result. "Oh no!"

"Ah, she is in a 2 against 1 scenario…" Hau said.

Pichu stood up, but it was unable to get the sand out of its eyes, much to its chagrin. Moon had to act as Pichu's eyes. "Okay, Thunder, right in front of you!" Pichu listened to Moon, firing off a potent bolt of Thunder at Gumshoos, but it was able to dodge since Pichu's aim wasn't the greatest anyway. "Ah, a miss…" This was already going downhill for her. "Uhm…ah! Okay, use your ears, and when you find the chance, use Thunder!

"Pi!" Pichu nodded, keeping its ears at the ready. Yungoos and Gumshoos moved once again, both intending to finish Pichu then and there while it was unable to see. The two of them moved in to use Bite and that's when Pichu's ears twitched. Right there! Pichu released a strong bolt of lightning that fried both Pokémon! Yungoos and Gumshoos fell to the ground, KO'ed after the Thunder.

"She did it!" Kiawe grinned.

"Nice work, Pichu!" Moon then knelt down, using her shirt to get the sand out of Pichu's eyes. "That better?" Pichu nodded.

With the Yungoos and Gumshoos defeated, it was time for the main event. The Totem Gumshoos had been watching and finally made its presence known to everyone, letting out a loud cry as it appeared. Moon whistled lowly at the size of the Totem Pokémon. "Just as big as I remember too…"

"The trial's just getting started. But you can do it!" Ash continued to give Moon his support

"Quick Attack!" Just like before, Pichu darted ahead at impressively fast speeds! But when it went to strike Gumshoos, it simply countered with a strong Frustration, its claw slamming Pichu into a wall. "Ah!"

"Oh, I felt that…" Hau rubbed the back of his head.

Pichu recovered, panting softly from that one hit. "Okay, let's try this; Thunder!" Pichu released strong Thunder towards Gumshoos, but it swung its claw against the ground, kicking up a cloud of sand to block it. "It used Sand-Attack to block? Geez. Okay, we can do that too! Pichu, use Iron Tail!" Pichu jumped into the air, feinting a swing at Gumshoos, but in truth, its tail hit the ground, kicking up a cloud of dirt to obscure Gumshoos's sight. "And Volt Tackle!" Lightning then exploded around Pichu as it jumped forward, violently slamming its body into Gumshoos's chest. It was a strong direct hit that sent both parties flying backwards. When Pichu landed, it grimaced as it suffered from the recoil.

"When Volt Tackle it used, it causes massive recoil damage to the user." Rotom said. "It's a double edged sword!"

"I wonder if Pichu can withstand using Volt Tackle too many times…" Lillie muttered.

Gumshoos did take a lot of damage, but recovered from the Volt Tackle surprisingly fast. Fast enough to lung forward, slamming Pichu with its claw yet again for another Frustration. "Pichu!" Moon cried out. Pichu landed on its stomach, one eye clenched shut as it tried to force itself up. "It's really strong…" Moon then took a look at her Z-ring. _"I may need to finish it with a Z-move but I…can I even use one after I failed last time…?_

"Toxapex: Poison Sting!"

On that command, numerous poisonous needles dropped down from the left. Moon noticed that the KO'ed Yungoos was in danger and without thinking, dove and rolled to catch it and keep it out of harm's way, despite the fact she was nearly pelted with a Poison Sting. "Are you okay!?" Yungoos gave Moon an appreciative smile.

"What the heck was that?!" Hau turned and they were met with… Tupp, Rapp, Zipp, and K of Team Skull. "Team Skull!?"

"You guys again? Don't you ever give up!?" Kiawe was growing tired of seeing Team Skull.

"We're here for important business!" Tupp said smugly, his three Salandit at his side. "And in order for that to happen, this little trial needs to be put on hold!"

"So step aside!" K placed her hands on her hips.

"You're the ones who need to leave!" Ash said.

"Pi…?" Pikachu's nose sniffed the air. It was catching a familiar scent…

K stared intently at Ash before pointing at him. "You. Alola's Champ! Buzz off."

Ash blinked. That voice… "Huh?"

"They really don't learn…" Mallow said before calling our Tsareena. They could never escape an encounter with Team Skull without some kind of battle.

"Decidueye, come out!" Hau called for the forest sniper to aid them.

"Turtonator, you're up!" Kiawe exclaimed as he sent out his partner.

"This is the second time Team Skull did this to me." Moon groaned and stood up. "What are you even here for!?"

"Word has it there's a strong Kommo-o lurkin' in this cave!" Rapp said while bringing out his Garbodor.

"And we want it!" Zipp added, her multiple Zubat at her side.

"That Kommo's mine!" Moon exclaimed angrily.

"Not after we catch it." K responded with a dismissive wave. "Let's make this quick! Toxapex, use Poison Sting!"

"Gumshoos, we'll handle this!" Mallow told the Totem Pokémon. Tsareena, Magical Leaf!" Tsareena complied, tracing both hands in a circle before releasing numerous leaves to clash with the Poison Sting, all of which resulting in small explosions.

"Snowy, use Powder Snow!" Lillie took aim at Rupp and her three Zubats. Snowy exhaled a frigid breath of air at the three Zubats, but they all scattered in different directions. "Ah!"

"Use Supersonic!" Rupp commanded. The three Zubats all let out loud cries that struck Snowy, pushing it backwards.

"Pikchu, Thunderbolt!" Pikachu jumped off of Ash's shoulder, releasing a bolt of lightning that fired the three Zubats, forcing them to retreat after sustaining damage.

"Turtonator, use Focus Blast!" Turtonator let out a battle cry, a focused sphere of energy rocketing from the hole in its chest, soaring right towards Toxapex.

"Water Pulse." K commanded. Toxapex easily matched the Focus Blast with Water Pulse, the two spheres exploding against each other violently, shaking Verdant Cavern. While the violence was going on, Moon was making sure that neither Yungoos or Gumshoos that she KO'ed earlier were getting hurt. As it stood now, she felt like she would only get in the way.

"Salandit, fry 'em with Flame Burst!" Tupp's three Salandit scurried across the ground, all three of them aiming potent bursts of flame at Tsareena and Decidueye.

"Decidueye, use Spirit Shackle!" Decidueye used one of its many quills as an arrow, ghastly energy swirling around the tip as it took aim with its makeshift bow. The single arrow pierced through the Flame Bursts and struck the Salandits, preventing them from moving due to its secondary effect.

"Now, Tsareena, use Trop Kick!" Tsareena jumped forward, using its leg strength to kick at the trapped Salandits repeatedly. This was going well until Garbordor's Gunk Shot hit Tsareena directly! "Ah!" Mallow gasped.

"We've been learning from Guzma and Plumeria!" Rapp was likely grinning under his scarf. "Now, Venoshock!"

"Venoshock!" K commanded as well. Both Toxapex and Garbodor began unleashing beams of poisonous energy. They were dangerous on their own, but combined it was an extremely potent attack that caused their opponents to go on the defensive.

"Watch out!" Lillie cried while Snowy tried to freeze whatever beams came its way with Powder Snow.

"There are so many!" Hau grunted as Decidueye took a hit. "Oh no!"

Moon just couldn't stand by and watch this. After handing Yungoos and Gumshoos to their Totem guardian, she commanded Pichu to act. "Thunder!" Pichu's Thunder hit both Garbodor and Toxapex, catching the attention of the Team Skull grunts.

"Eh, who's this one?" Tupp didn't recall seeing Moon before.

"We'll show her what happens when she messes with Team Skull! Gunk Shot!" Garbodor fired off a thick beam of sludge and poison at Pichu. At the speed it was coming, Pichu wasn't going to be able to dodge and Moon knew this.

"Pichu!" Moon prepared to use her own body to shield Pichu!

"Moon…!" Lille gasped. Once again, Moon was putting herself in harm's way to help someone else.

There was an explosion as contact was made. No one was expecting Moon to take an attack in Pichu's stead, so even Team Skull was silent as the purple smoke surrounded the girl. "What's with her…" K said with a sweat drop. They weren't actually here to hurt people! Just get them out of their way.

"I hope she's okay…." Ash grit his teeth. "Moon!"

"…" Moon had her eyes squeezed shut, She had braced for an impact….that never came. "H-Huh…?" Everyone's eyes had widened at what took the blow for her. It was a Kommo-o, using its armored scales to shield itself and her from the hit. "AH!"

"A Kommo-o really is here?!" Hau was shocked.

"There it is!" K pointed at Kommo-o, getting a Pokeball ready. "Toxapex, use Poison Sting on it!"

"Uh, that thing doesn't look too happy…" Tupp pointed out.

Regardless, Toxapex listened to its trainer's orders, firing off a Poison Sting towards the dragon warrior! Kommo-o acted on its own, its scales vibrating intensely. The dragon then held its hands out, using the vibration of its scales to use Clanging Scales! The intense soundwave it created easily overpowered the Poison Sting, exploding against Toxapex, Garbodor, Zubat, and Salandit! "Whoa…" Moon was in awe.

"That thing is really strong…" Kiawe couldn't believe it. Was this really Moon's!?

Moon stood up and shook her head, pointing at Team Skull once more. "One more time; Clanging Scales!"

"Wait, we're not ready!" Zipp pleaded, but it was of no use. Clanging Scales hit their Pokémon once again, resulting in another explosion. When that explosion faded, the only Pokémon that was still up was Toxapex, and it had been heavily damaged. More importantly, one of their scarves had blown off in the explosion, catching everyone's attention.

It was K's scarf, revealing the lower half of her face. Upon realizing this, K quickly used the back of her hand to cover her mouth, sweating profusely as her face was nearly revealed. The reason she had been trying to hide it? There was a scar on her right cheek that her hand couldn't quite cover up. "Ah…my face…"

"Pika!" Pikachu was yelling at Ash, trying to tell him something.

"Huh?" Ash looked at Pikachu, then at K. The resemblance was uncanny but it couldn't be. "Are you…?"

"We're leaving!" K demanded, returning Toxapex and sprinting off ahead of everyone else.

"Hey, when did you start calling the shots!?" Tupp was the leader of this small group here! At least his own trio. But after they returned their Pokémon, they followed behind K in a flash.

"…" Ash was stunned. "That looked a lot like her…"

"Are you okay?" Lillie noticed Ash seemed off.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine!" Ash presented his usual smile.

Attention then turned to Moon and Kommo-o. Despite the dragon's menacing appearance, it was nuzzling Moon and Pichu rather happily. "Ah, I'm so sorry! You protected Lillie and I and I couldn't even find you after! Are you okay!?"

"I guess that is hers after all." Mallow held a relieved smile. "It looks so happy with her!"

"It was so fierce just a second ago…" Kiawe pointed out. It was almost scary.

Rotom was snapping pictures of Kommo-o. "This Kommo-o managed to survive in an environment that wasn't suited for it!"

That's when Totem Gumshoos lifted a hand and made a noise. It was trying to explain that it founded Kommo-o wounded and offered it aid. Moon smiled and somewhat assumed that to be the case. "Thank you, Gumshoos. Mind if we continue our battle now? I want to use Kommo-o." And to that notion, Gumshoos nodded.

.

Pichu finally got to rest while Moon and Kommo-o picked up where the battle left off! Gumshoos was the first to start, moving quickly to strike at Kommo-o with a Frustration. "Drain Punch!" Kommo-o sprinted forward to meet Gumshoos in the middle, beating it to the punch with a literal punch. Drain Punch slammed into Gumshoos' frame, knocking it backwards a great distance.

"Whoa! That Kommo-o is super strong!" Hau exclaimed. Compared to the damage Pichu dealt, it was already noticeable how strong Kommo-o was.

Gumshoos landed after the super effective hit, now violently clawing at the ground to mask its presence with a Sand Attack. "Clanging Scales!" Moon commanded. Kommo-o's attack broke through the cloud of sand, but Gumshoos was no longer there! "Huh?!" Where did it go? It used Dig! Moon realized this too late when the ground under Kommo-o broke apart and Gumshoos rose up, slamming its claw into Kommo-o's jaw! The power was enough to force it back, but at the same time, Kommo-o gripped its arm to ensure Gumshoos wasn't going anywhere. "Outrage."

"RAAAAH!" Kommo-o let out a loud roar as a fierce red aura flared around its body. For a brief moment its power went into overdrive and it proceeded to swing Gumshoos around like a ragdoll before hurling it into the nearest wall at full force. That one attack was all it took to finish Gumshoos off. While Pichu did manage to deal decent damage, Kommo-s strength was vastly superior and it showed, leaving everyone shocked.

"I-It looks like Gumshoos can't battle anymore…!" Lillie said.

"So fast…so strong…" Mallow clapped her hands together. "The others are going to be so shocked when they hear about this!"

"I wanna battle it!" Was the first thing Ash thought to say.

"Me first!" Kiawe stood in front of Ash, as if that would get him to fight first.

"No, me!" Even Hau was in on this! Those three were birds of a feather.

Moon hugged both Kommo-o and Pichu. "Ah, you guys are great! I'm so glad to have you back, Kommo-o! I really didn't mean to make you worry like that…" Gumshoos did recover from its defeat, walking towards Moon with a hand extended. Moon shook its hand, giving a wide grin. "Thanks for the battle and protecting my Kommo-o, Gumshoos. "I owe you one."

"And with that, you've completed Melemele's Island Trial." Ash told Moon. "That means you can fight Hala now!"

"I'm really interested to see how you fight Tutu." That was the whole reason Hau tagged along for this trip. After seeing Moon in action, he knew that this Grand Trial was about to be one heck of a show!

Moon rummaged around in her bag before pulling out Kommo-o's Pokeball, tapping the capsule against its nose to return it and did the same for Pichu, allowing them to rest. "I'll do my best tomorrow. Ash, Kiawe, will you help me out?"

"Of course!" The two said in unison.

"I'll invite the others to the diner so we can have a celebratory lunch!" Mallow beamed.

Lillie held Snowy in her arms, watching Moon smile. _"It looks like she's been doing a little better. That makes me happy."_

Ash, on the other hand, couldn't get the encounter with Team Skull out of his head. It was hard to tell since she covered her face, but K looked all too familiar, despite her facial features appearing different. _"I wonder…"_

.

.

Next Time: Moon vs Hala.


	23. Chapter 23: Moon vs Hala

It was the night before Moon's Grand Trial. After a last minute day of training with Ash and Kiawe, all that was left was to sleep the night away, but Moon couldn't sleep. She sat on the second floor couch, staring up through the skylight at the moon above. She was so anxious. This sensation was familiar, she was certain she felt it once before. Lifting her head up, she saw Pichu and Kommo-o asleep, which made her smile. "I may not have my memory back fully, but at least I have some things…" A quiet sigh then escaped her. She missed her home terribly. These sort of thoughts kept her up and it didn't help that she had a huge battle tomorrow.

That's when Ash poked his head up from the ladder. "Can't sleep?"

"No." Moon responded. "Too nervous."

That's when Ash climbed up the ladder, taking a seat on the floor next to the couch. "I know how it feels, but you'll do just fine. You have Pichu and Kommo-now."

"Mhm…" Moon continued to look up at the night sky. "Kommo-o is really strong, and Pichu has been getting there thanks to your help. Pichu's still got a lot to learn, so I worry about it sometimes. I'm glad I found Kommo-o to help relieve some of the weight it's been carrying these days."

"But what about you?" Ash glanced at Moon, who seemed to glance away.

"I'm fine. It's just taking some getting used to." Moon was telling a half truth. "But we'll try our best tomorrow. I have faith in Kommo-o and I believe in Pichu." She was quick to change the subject off of herself.

Ash noticed but gave a smile nonetheless. He wouldn't press the matter if Moon didn't want to talk about it. "You can do it." He the stood up and started to head back downstairs. "So don't worry about it too much, and try to get some rest."

"…." Moon didn't say anything. _"He's a strange one…"_

As for Pichu, it wasn't exactly asleep. Its eyes were closed, but it overheard the conversation between Moon and Ash. Hearing that Moon believed in it caused it to smile and eased whatever worries it may have had, allowing it to fall asleep. "Pi…"

.

.

Iki Town. The time had finally come for Moon's grand trial. Moon and Hala stood on opposite ends of the battlefield and the judge for this bout was Melemele's most popular character: Illima (along with his band of fangirls watching)! "Thank you for allowing me to proctor this Grand Trial, it is an exceptionally huge honor." The pink haired male said.

"I'm getting a little nervous just sitting here…" Sophocles said, shifting in his seat.

"Moon looks so focused." Lillie pointed out. It was a completely different expression than seen on her so far.

"That just means she's ready to take this trial on!" Ash grinned.

"Now then…" Illima cleared his throat. "This battle will be a 2 vs 2 single battle! The battle is over when both Pokémon on one side are unable to battle!"

"Wait, 2 vs 2?" Marcus blinked. "Doesn't Moon only have Pichu?"

"Heh…" Kiawe had to withhold his knowing smirk.

"You'll see~" Mallow chimed.

Now Lana was curious because Mallow was keeping it a surprise from even her! "Now I really wonder what she caught…"

"It's pretty strong." Hau remarked.

"Are you prepared?" Hala asked Moon.

"Yes." Moon nodded.

"Very well. Crabominable, you're first!" Hala tossed his first Pokeball into the air, calling forth Crabominable.

"Hm. Alright, you're first!" Moon tossed a Pokeball out and her first choice was Kommo-o, which let out a mighty roar! "Kommo-o!"

"What the!?" Takeba's eyes widened. "When in the world did she catch that!?"

"That's a pretty big jump from a Pichu…" Elizabeth was in awe.

"Now I wish I had gone to that trial myself…" Grace grumbled.

"That's impressive." Scott said.

"Whoa….!" Lana and Sophocles were completely taken off guard. The look on everyone's faces made hiding this little secret all the more worth it. While everyone was preparing to watch this battle with excitement and anticipation, there was one more guest watching from within the nearby trees: Tapu Koko. It had also been watching Moon's trial the other day, but no one was aware of its presence.

"Now, let the battle begin!" Illma exclaimed.

"Crabominable, use Bubble Beam!" Hala commanded, being the first one to start this bout off. The large snow crab opened its mouth, releasing a blast of bubbles directly for Kommo-o.

"Kommo-o, block it!" Kommo-o held its arms in front of its body, using its defensive scales to shield itself from the Bubble Beam. It was a direct hit, but Kommo-o barely suffered any damage and it showed. This made Moon grin. "That's it!"

"Wow, no damage!" Lana smiled. "That's really strong."

"Now, fire back with Focus Blast!" Kommo-o cupped its hands at its side, generating raw energy that took the shape of a sphere. It then fired this destructive sphere forward, watching as it flew to collide against Crabominable!

"Brutal Swing!" Crabominable wildly swung its large arm around before slamming its fist into the Focus Blast, using its sheer strength to knock the Focus Blast into the sky, where it exploded violently.

"Gah…" Moon had a sweat drop. She wasn't expecting the Focus Blast to be deflected like that. "No matter, move in for a Drain Punch!" As she said this, she punched the air in front of her to mirror the command. Kommo-o roared and did just that, lunging forward as a green aura swirled around its fist.

"Power up Punch!" Crabominable scurried forward, meeting Kommo-o in the middle of the field with a Power Up Punch to clash against Drain Punch. Since Kommo-o didn't hit it directly, none of its health was being leeched, and since Power Up Punch boosted the user's attack upon usage, the tides shifted in Hala's favor. "Now, Ice Hammer!"

"Wait…!" Moon gasped, realizing her mistake. Crabominable's free arm was suddenly covered in a chilling aura, in which it used to slam into Kommo-o's side for a super effective hit. Kommo-o let out a roar of pain while staggering backwards, growling at Crabominable.

"That had to hurt…" Kiawe surmised.

"Ice is super effect against Dragon-roto!" Rotom said, pointing out the obvious as usual. "But despite that, Kommo-o took that hit rather well!"

The secondary effect of using Ice Hammer was a drop in the user's speed. Crabominable wasn't very fast to begin with, so this drop wouldn't affect it too much in the long run. Moon took a deep breath before issuing another command, planning to use that speed drop to her advantage. "Clanging Scales!" Kommo-o's scales began to vibrate intensely. The warrior dragon held its arms forward, releasing a large wave of sound from its scales. This destructive soundwave struck Crabominable directly, forcing it to slide backwards from the hit! While Ice Hammer dropped speed, Clanging Scales dropped Kommo-o's defense.

"That's a risky ploy." Scott pointed out. "It did good damage, but now…"

"Kommo-o is more susceptible to physical attacks!" Rotom said.

"Drain Punch once more!" Kommo-o sprinted forward, preparing to strike Crabominable with a Drain Punch.

"Brutal Swing!" Just as Kommo-swung, Crabominable shifted its body to the side, much to everyone's surprise. It then spun its body around quickly, brutally swinging its massive arms into Kommo's side, which crushed it into the ground. "Now, Ice Hammer!" Crabominable launched itself into the air, aiming both frozen fists down to put Kommo-o into an icy grave!

"Outrage!" Moon commanded at the last second. There was an impact and a cloud of smoke and when it cleared, Kommo-o was holding Crabominable back with its own raw power. The dragon roared as a fierce red aura flared around its body and its eyes turned blazing red. The warrior then let out a mighty cry as it tossed Crabominable backwards.

"Whoa, that's seriously strong." Marcus said.

Kommo-o then rushed forward violently, aiming a series of quick, brutal strikes at its foe with its arms. Every incoming punch was as strong as it looked, leaving Crabominable under a relentless assault. Hala simply had to wait for an opening, which he saw between strikes. "Ice Hammer!" Crabominable then swung its frozen fist forward, striking Kommo-o right in the chest! Ice Hammer already hurt before, but with the defense drop, it did even more damage than last time!

"Kommo-o!" Moon exclaimed worriedly. Kommo-o's Outrage ran its course after dealing a considerable amount of damage to Crabominable. Now, Kommo-o had to suffer the secondary effects of such a powerful move: confusion. The dragon was stunned, unable to move.

"Brutal Swing!" Crabominable swung its arm around before slamming it into the ground. This prompted a powerful shockwave to shoot through the battlefield and explode upon hitting Kommo-o.

"Oh no!" Lillie gasped.

But as that smoke cleared, all one could see was a heavily damaged Kommo-o that did not fall. This made Moon smirk. "Sorry to disappoint, but it's going to take a lot more than that to put us down! Now, Focus Blast!" And just as before, Kommo-o fired focused energy towards Crabominable.

"Brutal Swing it again!" Hala shouted.

"Not this time! Clanging Scales!" Kommo-o's signature soundwave followed behind the Focus Blast, wrapping around it to give it a substantial boost in speed and power. This sudden burst meant that Crabominable wasn't prepared and the Focus Blast exploded right on it! As the smoke cleared, it was clear as day that Crabominable was down.

"Crabominable is unable to battle! That means Kommo-o is the winner!" Illma exclaimed and as he did this, his fangirls cheered since he was such a good referee in their eyes.

"She's got the lead!" Mallow grinned.

"It's a good start…" Grace folded her arms over her chest. "But it's too early to count her victory just yet. Kommo-o took a lot of damage."

Hala returned Crabominable with a smile. "Thank you, old friend. Take a good rest. Now, Hariyama, it's your turn!" And out came Hariyama, taking a sumo-wrestlers stance as it was called into battle.

"Just one more. Let's keep going, Kommo-o!" Moon exclaimed. "Focus Blast!" Kommo-o wasted no time in launching a Focus Blast towards its new foe, looking for a direct hit!

"Arm Thrust!" Hariyama simply thrusted both of its large palms forward. The first hit stopped the Focus Blast in its track. The second and third hits were all it needed to completely destroy the Focus Blast, leaving it unharmed.

"Eee…" Moon felt the sweat roll down the side of her head. That was scary. "Okay…let's try Drain Punch!" It looked like another straightforward assault.

"Arm Thrust again!" Hariyama was prepared to meet with Kommo-o, but just as the large Pokémon thrust its arm forward, Kommo-o evaded and slipped to the right, meeting the Arm Thrust Pokémon with a rising uppercut to its rib! "Ah…!" Hala gasped.

"That's it!" Moon grinned. With a successful Drain Punch finally connecting, some of Kommo-o's lost health returned to it. "Again!" Kommo-o aimed for another Drain Punch, but Moon's greed would cost her as Hariyama stopped the next fist cold with its large palm. "Uh oh."

"Arm Thrust!" Hariyama then aimed a series of high speed palms strikes at Kommo-o, each one hitting harder than the last. The final strike pushed Kommo-o backwards and the damage it received was starting to slow it down.

"Clanging Scales!" Once more with feeling. Kommo-o's signature soundwave collided against Hariyama, dealing a moderate amount of damage, which is what Moon was looking for. "And now…!"

"Heavy Slam!" Before Moon could issue her next command, Hariyama was already in the air, bringing down all of its weight onto Kommo-o. Hariyama was a heavy Pokémon, so this impact caused the surrounding area to shake violently. When Hariyama jumped back, Kommo-o was finally defeated.

"Kommo-o is unable to battle! This makes Hariyama the victor!" Illma said.

"That looked painful…" Lillie shuddered.

"Kommo-o is a double edged sword with how powerful it is." Marcus said. "At least she was able to take out one Pokémon with it and damage the other."

"Hariyama is Tutu's strongest Pokémon. The battle won't be easy." Hau said with clear hints of pride for his grandfather.

"Thank you, Kommo-o. Take a good rest." Moon smiled as she returned Kommo-o. She only had one Pokémon left. "Okay Pichu, you're up!" Pichu was called out and was immediately intimidated by the Pokémon at least 5x its size. But it shrugged off this off and prepared to fight. "Quick Attack!" Pichu dashed forward in a straight line towards Hariyama.

"Heavy Slam!" Hariyama had experience in battling opponents in higher speed tiers. So it lifted one leg up and slammed all of its weight down onto the ground. Heavy Slam was not used as a direct attack, but rather to create a pseudo-earthquake that took Pichu off balance. "Now, Close Combat!"

"Pichu, move!" Moon pleaded. But it was too late; Pichu was assaulted by extremely fast and powerful palm strikes that dealt heavy damage. On the upside, Hariyama lowered its own defenses by using Close Combat. Pichu hit the ground on its stomach, but immediately bounced up despite the damage it took. "Thunder!"

"PIIIICHUUU!" Pichu gathered as much electricity as it could, firing off a potent bolt of lightning that struck Hariyama directly.

"A direct hit!" Lana said.

But Hariyama seemed relatively unfazed despite the Thunder. Damage had been dealt, but it didn't look like it did much for Moon. "Gah…" Moon shook her head. "Quick Attack again!" Pichu darted forward, moving in a zig-zag motion.

"Stop it with Heavy Slam!" Hariyama was about to repeat the same motions as last time, but Moon wasn't going to fall for the same trick a second time.

"Jump forward!" Just as Hariyama brought its leg down, Pichu proceeded to jump ahead. It was small enough to slip under Hariyama and avoid the shockwave all at the same time. Now that it was behind Hariyama, Moon could strike. "Volt Tackle!" Using all of its momentum, a fierce veil of lightning exploded from Pichu's body and it lunged forward, slamming its tiny frame into Hariyama's back, forcing the large Pokémon to stagger forward. Pichu flipped, landed on all fours, and grimaced from the amount of recoil it sustained.

"Impressive, young Moon!" Hala gave earnest praise. "But let's see how you handle this! Belly Drum!" Hariyama then began to slam its belly with its palms, a strange flowing around its body. At the large cost of whatever vitality it had remaining, its attack rose to the maxium!

"Oh that's not good…" Takeba gulped for Moon.

"Ah…" Moon clenched a hand into a fist. This situation was looking dire.

"Heavy Slam!" Hariyama jumped into the air once again, intending to bring its full weight down upon Pichu. Considering that Hariyama absolutely weighted 100x more than Pichu, the damage this move was going to dish out would absolutely finish the tiny mouse.

"Pichu, evade with Quick Attack!" Moon's command was more out of desperation than anything. Pichu jumped into the air with Quick Attack just as Hariyama came down, sweating itself as it knew that attack would end it. "Iron Tail!" Pichu then dove down, slamming its tiny tail against Hariyama's face for a direct hit. Moon hoped this hit would finish Hariyama, but that was wishful thinking.

"Arm Thrust!" One palm strike knocked the wind out of Pichu and the other nearly crushed it into the ground. Belly Drum made Hariyama a force to be reckoned with.

"Pichu…!" Moon cried out. Pichu had one eye clenched shut and struggle to stand on all fours. _"It's so strong…what do I do…I don't know if Pichu can take the recoil of another Volt Tackle…"_

"That Hariyama means serious business…" Grace said.

"Hariyama…!" Hala was about to issue one last command, but then…static. Electricity appeared around Hariyama's body, inhibiting its movement completely. "What?!"

"Ah!" The others gasped.

"Is that Static!?" Hau asked.

"Of course!" Rotom chimed in. "Pichu's ability affected Hariyama! It's paralyzed and can't move!"

"The drawback of attacking it all those times." Elizabeth said.

"This is your chance! Finish it, Moon!" Ash shouted.

"R-Right…!" This was her only chance. Moon stared at her Z-ring. The last time she used one she failed. This time had to be different, right? _"It was a lot easier to use one when I had no memory, but I believe in Pichu. So it can do this!" _"Pichu!" Moon crossed her arms, the Z-ring on her wrist shining, the Electricium-Z resonating with her movements and Pichu. "This one is all you! So take the Z-power and make it your own!"

"It's a Z-move…" Lillie watched carefully. She was aware of how Moon felt about using Z-moves and truly hoped this would pan out for her.

"_**GIGAVOLT HAVOC!"**_Moon crossed her arms in a Z formation, allowing the Z-power to flood into Pichu. Pichu let out a powerful battle cry as a spear of lightning appeared in front of its body, all composed of Z-power. The spear of lightning then shot forward, racing towards Hariyama. Would this be the trump card Moon needed to finish this battle off!? …They'd never find out, because the Gigavolt Havoc dispersed before it could land. "A-Ah…!?"

"I-It failed!?" Sophocles gasped.

"What happened?! She could use one before!" Kiawe asked. This didn't make any sense.

"…." Moon just stared in wide eyed shock. _"I-It failed…again…I failed…again…"_

Hala stroked his chin. "I see. Even if your Pokémon can perform the Z-move, it means nothing if your mental state is in dissonance with your Pokémon's." Hala understood full well what happened. It wasn't Pichu's fault. Moon was the problem for her Z-move failing.

"Moon!" Ash shouted, but it didn't look like she heard him.

"You are an exceptional battler, but you are in your head far too much and it hinders your abilities." Hala took a stance of his own, his Z-ring beginning to shine. Hariyama could move now and everyone could see what was coming. "In exchange for a wonderful bout, allow me to show you the full power of an Island Kahuna!"

"Moon, do something!" Takeba exclaimed.

"Don't just stand there!" Lana shouted. "Please!"

Moon's eyes dulled and she just stood there. She couldn't hear anyone else. _"I can't do anything right…I'm gonna lose…I failed again…" _Those words were on repeat in her mind over and over. This was why she opted out of joining the Ultra Guardians, how could she protect this Alola, let alone her own, when she was such a failure? Her hand dropped to her side and she just stared at what was to come. _"I'm sorry, Pichu…I failed you…"_

"MOON!" That was Lillie's voice.

Moon snapped back to reality at the sound of Lillie's voice. She turned around, staring at the blonde. "Lillie…?"

"YOU CAN DO IT! THIS BATTLE ISN'T OVER YET!" Lillie shouted at the top of her lungs. She honestly had no idea if her shouts of encouragement would even work, but she knew more than anyone else how cornered Moon felt. She couldn't sit and watch Moon like this. "I believe in you." (Play Alola!)

"…." Moon's eyes widened. For a moment she had a brief memory. This happened before. Her Lillie cheered her on in the exact same way during this battle. The life returned to Moon's eyes, she nodded, and turned around. "Pichu, can you still fight!?"

"Pi!" Pichu nodded, giving a slight grin.

"Oh no…I don't like that look on her face. That means she's about to do something ridiculous." Elizabeth turned to Ash. "What have you been teaching her!?"

"Hehe…" Ash just grinned.

Hala was punching the air in front of him rapidly and Hariyama followed suit. Their pose was complete and the Z-power flooded into Hariyama. _**"ALL OUT PUMMELING!" **_Hariyama then began to strike the area in front of it, sending numerous orange fists flying towards Pichu. If even a single fist hit Pichu, it was over and everyone knew that.

"Pichu, Quick Attack!" Moon commanded brazenly.

"She's gonna dash right into it!?" Takeba was stressed. "It's she mad!?"

"Can Pichu make it!?" Hau asked.

Pichu started to dash forward, using its high speed and small frame to dodge and weave through the numerous fists flying at it. Each fist that hit the ground exploded, causing large debris to fly into the sky. Pichu was getting closer and closer to Hariyama, giving it less time to react and dodge, but somehow it managed to do this. Everyone was silent and tense as they watched the events play out, unable to utter any sounds. Finally, the last hit of All Out Pummeling occurred, which involved Hariyama itself lunging at Pichu with a large fist to finish it off! This was the chance that Moon was waiting for. "I BELIEVE IN YOU, PICHU!"

Pichu's eyes flashed as it jumped up, using the airborne rubble as platforms. Pichu's entire body began to shine a bright neon blue light as it continued to bounce off the rubble, soaring high into the sky, right in front of the sun as the blue light changed its entire body. When that blue light exploded, Pichu having evolved into Pikachu in the blinding light of the sun! "PIIII!"

"What…!?" Hala gasped.

"Pichu evolved…" Scott was as surprised as everyone else!

"VOLT TACKLE!" Moon yelled while pointing her hand forward. The newly evolved Pikachu fell from the sky, using all of its momentum to its advantage, falling towards Haryiama with an even stronger aura of lightning blazing around its entire body.

"CLOSE COMBAT!" Hala yelled at the same time. Hariyama prepared to strike Pikachu down with one last strike. Pikachu collided into Hariyama's large palm, resulting a large explosion that created a thick cloud of black smoke! When the smoke cleared, Pikachu landed on all fours behind Hariyama, panting heavily as it suffered from another dose of recoil. Hariyama didn't budge and neither side fell.

The air was tense and silent, everyone staring intently until….Hariyama collapsed.

"Hariyama is unable to battle! That means the winner of this Grand Trial is Challenger Moon!" Illma exclaimed.

As soon as Moon's victory was announced, Pikachu collapsed. It was holding on to the very end to ensure its trainer won. But just as it fell, Moon ran into catch it, smiling widely. "Thank you so much, Pikachu."

"She won!" Mallow and Lana jumped for joy together.

"Wow, that was…stressful to watch." Marcus placed a hand on his chest.

"You're telling me!" Takeba stood up. "I lost a year off my life watching that!"

"That aside, I can't believe your plan is actually working…" Elizabeth was shocked at that more than anything else.

"You did great, Moon!" Ash said with his usual cheeky grin.

"She's amazing." Hau admitted.

Hala approached Moon, shaking hands with the young girl. "That was a fantastic battle."

"T-Thank you." Moon said with a bashful smile.

"I cannot offer you anything, but…" As Hala spoke, Tapu Koko caught everyone's attention. Not in a grandiose way, but it made sure that everyone saw it before it left. "…But it seems that you've also caught the attention of Tapu Koko. It must have been watching over your trials these last few days."

"T-That's embarrassing…" Moon returned Pikachu into its Pokeball so it could rest.

"So, how does it feel to have completed a Grand Trial!?" Sophocles asked.

"It feels like a big weight is off my shoulders." Moon responded before turning to Lillie.

"It's a weight off my shoulders too, you're crazy." Grace said with a sigh.

"You were great out there." Lillie told Moon with a soft smile. She hoped that the barrier between them would lower just a bit now.

"Ah…Lillie, you…" Moon was about to say something to Lillie's smiling face, but that's when it happened. She had another memory return. The way Lillie was looking at her now was the same as her Lillie during the start of her adventure. "It's the same…you look just like her…"

"Huh?" Lillie tilted her head.

"But you're not her…" Moon turned away. The only reason Moon was able to get out of her own head was because of Lillie, but in that moment, she forgot that it wasn't _her _Lillie. That she wasn't home. She was in another world where she didn't exist. "You're not my Lillie, so stop acting like you are!"

"..!" The joyous atmosphere shifted immediately.

"M-Moon, I was just…" Lillie began.

"Stop acting like you're her." That wasn't a fair thing for Moon to say and she knew it, but it all just came out at once. "Everything's fine, but I can't be around you! It reminds me home and how much I miss it, how much I miss her! Yet you've been around me so much these last few days and it's been driving me crazy! Every time I have to remind myself you're not the person I think you are and it just hurts more and more! So just…leave me alone, Lillie!" Moon then sprinted off without any warning. It happened so suddenly no one could even process what just happened.

"…I-I'm sorry, I…" Lillie turned away. Those words hurt far more than she could've ever imagined. Lillie could feel the tears well in her eyes. Why _did _that hurt so much? She knew what she was doing; she knew that being around Moon was both good and bad, but she was so focused on the good, she never foresaw this worst case scenario playing out.

"…I…I think my planned backfired…" Takeba was aware that a fallout could've happened, but not to this scale.

.

.

Another Alola:

The Aether Foundation had been completely overrun by Team Rainbow Rocket, being used as their temporary base of operations. A Rainbow Rocket grunt sprinted into the main room, panting heavily while speaking to the man with his back turned. "S-Sorry sir…the girl and her mother escaped…they had help."

"I see…" The man responded, folding his arms behind his back. "It doesn't matter. I would've liked to have the president as a member, but it doesn't change anything. The Aether Foundation is ours now."

"But we can't do anything because that other girl escaped into the Ultra Wormhole…" The grunt sighed. "Moon, I think it was. We would've had that blonde girl and her mother if that Moon girl didn't leave her Pokémon with them!"

"A temporary setback." The man said calmly. "This was the first step in my goal to expand my dominance over other worlds. They can all run, but they cannot escape the grasp of Team Rainbow Rocket. Once we retrieve that key from that girl, nothing will stop my conquest."

"Another note, sir." The grunt reported. "During our scouting mission in the other Alola, where Moon fled to, there were reports of locals mistaking us for Team Rocket."

"Another Team Rocket? Now this is interesting. I wonder if we can forge an alliance with that Team Rocket…I know that I'm a logical man and we both share the same goal at the end of the day…" The man then turned around to face the grunt. Who else to lead Team Rainbow Rocket other than the man himself…

Rainbow Rocket Giovanni.

.

.

Part 1: End.


	24. Chapter 24: The Calm Before The Storm

A day passed since Moon's Grand Trial. There was heavy tension in Kukui's house. To cope with her frustration, Moon gathered numerous blankets and pillows and held herself upstairs, wrapped up in a small pillow and blanket fort. A bit childish, but it was her way of keeping people out. Not even her Pikachu was allowed it, and it poked the pillows a few times with a concerned look. "Pii…."

"…" Moon didn't say anything. "Sorry, Pikachu…I want to be alone right now."

"Pi…" Moon's Pikachu frowned. It then looked up, noticing that Rowlet had taken a perch on top of the little fort and fell asleep. It was worried about Moon as well.

Burnet looked up to the second floor concerned. "She's been like that since she came home yesterday. I didn't want to pry, but I don't want to leave her like this. Did something happen?"

Ash, Lana, Mallow, Sopocholes, and Kiawe visited to check on Moon, and it was just as bad as they thought. "Yeah…" Ash sighed, thinking back to yesterday. Moon's victory against Hala was such a great celebration until she yelled at Lillie. That's when all the progress they had been making with her backfired.

"Her time around Lillie ended up having both a negative and positive effect on her-roto," Rotom explained. "It all stemmed from how much she misses home."

"It was hard to watch." Mallow rubbed her cheek. "One second she was happy and the next it all turned on its head."

"I see…" Burnet let out a quiet sigh. It all made sense. At the end of the day, Moon was a young girl who was far away from home. While everyone was familiar to Moon, the opposite was not true. Even though Ash and his friends were trying, it was difficult to ultimately get through to her.

"I feel bad for her." Kukui adjusted his hat. "I wonder if there's anything we can do to make her feel at home. While she's here, I want her to know that we'll treat her like family. At the same time, that _might_ be the problem." It was a precarious situation with no clear solution. They just had to take their time with Moon and wait for her to open up on her own terms…which was hard when she took 2 steps forward, then reclined with 4 steps back. But no one blamed her for this. They understood.

"What do we do, then?" Lana asked. "I don't want to leave her like this."

"Should we try to cheer her up?" Sophocles asked.

"I'll try talking to her." Burnet offered a smile, climbing up the ladder to speak to Moon. "Hey, Moon?"

"….Hm?" Moon mumbled. It was a response, but a quiet one.

"Are you okay?" Burnet's tone was soft. In this situation she was likely the only one who could approach Moon and talk to her.

"Not really…" Moon replied.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Burnet took a seat next to Moon's little fort.

"…I miss home." Moon said. "And I said some mean things because of it…"

"And you feel bad about it?" Burnet asked gently.

"Mhm. A little…" Moon gave a nod.

"Maybe you just need some time to yourself. Whenever you're ready to talk, I'll be here to listen, okay?" Not wishing to press the issue too far, Burnet simply gave Moon a smile and went back downstairs. "I think it's best we leave her be for the time now." She told Kukui and Ash. "Sometimes a girl just needs her space."

Kukui smiled, trusting his wife on this matter. "Okay."

"All right." Ash nodded. This was just something Moon needed a little time to adjust to, but he was certain she'd be all right.

"I think we just have to be there when she needs us to be." Kiawe said, crossing his arms. "We haven't known her for very long, but I feel like we've seen enough to know how determined and strong she can be."

"She'll be okay." Ash said firmly.

That just left Lillie…

.

.

Lillie was at home in her room, lying on her bed. The events of yesterday continued to play in her head nonstop. She was aware of what she was doing, but she didn't think it would get that bad. Snowy and Magearna were trying their best to cheer her up and she acknowledged their efforts, but it wasn't enough. "Was I being selfish?" Lillie wasn't sure anymore. She did want to help Moon, but she unintentionally did more harm than good.

It was at that moment that Lusamine gently knocked on the door. "Lillie, it's me."

Lillie sat up, surprised to see her mother here. "Oh, Mother…what are you doing here?"

"I had a feeling something was wrong, so I came to check on you." Lusamine then walked in and sat on Lillie's bed, giving a soft smile. "What happened?"

Lillie tucked her knees close to her chest, staring out the window. "I think I hurt Moon. I was just trying to help her feel at home and I truly wanted to support her, but…she ended up yelling at me yesterday. I think I just made her miss home and her Lillie even more."

Lusamine placed a hand on her daughter's back after listening to her story. "It's not an easy situation to deal with for anyone. To be trapped in a world that reminds you so much of home, but isn't your home, must be very hard on Moon. Moon and the other you must be exceptionally close. You are probably the most difficult thing she has to deal with. You're such a kind girl, Lillie, for wanting to help Moon. But you were only thinking of the good, weren't you?"

"I was…" Lillie admitted.

"There was nothing wrong with that, but you need to be more careful in the future. Even if Moon is upset at you, I have no doubt that she wants to get closer to you as well. You just need to give her a little time and space. She'll come to you when she's ready."

"How do you know…?" Lillie looked up to her mother.

"She put herself in harm's way just to keep you safe. Even after learning the truth, I saw the way she looked at you. I think she's just unsure how to approach you, but she'll figure it out in time." Lusamine reassured Lillie. "In the end, I think your effect on her is positive."

"Mother…" That made Lillie feel a lot better. Without thinking much about it, she embraced her mother in a hug. "Thank you."

This made Lusamine's eyes sparkle. It was rare for her to be the one receiving a hug, but this overbearing mother would take it and run far away. Arms coiled around Lillie tightly and she was making the most of this hug. "Ahh! My dear Lillie!"

Lillie's eyes widened and her face paled. Lusamine's grip was very, very tight. "A-Ack…Mother…too tight…can't breathe…"

Gladion was outside Lillie's room, leaning against the wall while listening to the events going on. He was going to go in, but opted out since Lusamine seemed like the best person to talk to Lillie. That and he'd rather not have to deal with Lusamine's Vice-Grip of a hug. That was one family thing he'd gladly pass on. "…."

.

.

Back in the beach house with Marcus and the others, Takeba was pacing back and forth. "Oh…my plan so backfired."

"Yeah, what did you think would happen?!" Elizabeth pinched the bridge of her nose. "I told you it was going to end badly. You were shoving the biggest sore spot in Moon's face and you thought she'd take that well?"

"That's enough." Grace stepped in, nipping this argument in the bud. "There's no point in arguing about it now."

"She's right." Scott leaned against a wall, arms crossed. "The damage is done. Now we can only see if things get better or worse between Moon and Lillie. There's not much we can do now."

"Ugh…" Takeba legitimately felt bad. She only wanted to help. "One step forward, three steps back with anything I try to do."

"It's all right. If I've noticed anything, it's that Ash's friends are tough, so you don't have to worry." Marcus slung an arm around Takeba's shoulder to cheer her up. It worked a little bit.

"Moving on, Ash told me about that Team Skull grunt. You know…the one that looks like…Kasumi." Grace struggled to say that. She was clearly trying not to get her hopes up too much. "Apparently she has a scar on her cheek, too."

"Ah, her…" Marcus closed his eyes. "If only there was a way to figure out if it was her or not for sure."

"She won't give you her name but she doesn't look the same. If it _is _Kasumi, I wonder what happened…" Elizabeth mumbled.

"UGGGH! Smart people are so stupid." Takeba placed her hands on her hips. "You have her Dragonite. So if you run into her again, just make sure to call out Dragonite. It would recognize its own trainer, wouldn't it?"

Silence.

"You're a genius." Marcus said.

"Don't inflate her like that." Elizabeth immediately said. "Even if she's not…wrong."

.

.

In Team Rocket's current base of operations in Alola, Jessie, James, and Meowth were currently on the line with Giovanni and his secretary, Matori. Matori was staring at the trio, and while James and Meowth held neutral expressions, there was a glare on Jessie as she stared a hole into the woman she deemed her rival. "We've called for an update." Matori said. "Along with some questions."

"Questions, huh?" Jessie lifted a brow, barely holding back whatever snide remark was on the tip of her tongue. "Is this about it being time to return to HQ, soon?"

"There is that," Matori said, adjusting her glasses. "But I want to know if you've heard anything about Team Rocket members causing trouble in Alola the other day. Giovanni wants to know what you were trying to accomplish."

"Eh?" Meowth blinked. "Whaddya talkin' about?"

"We haven't done anything." James said. Well…excluding the battle in Lush Jungle, they haven't done much to draw attention to themselves. "All we've done recently is test out the new capsule system."

"Wait a sec…" Jessie remembered something that Takeba said the other day. "That pink twerp mentioned something about Rainbow Rocket. Is that a new division we weren't told about!?" Was Giovanni keeping them out of the loop!?

"There is only Team Rocket." Giovanni said, petting the Persian sitting on his lap. "I don't know anything about this…Rainbow Rocket. But I do know one thing." With a snap of his fingers, a brief video played of the events the other day: Team Rainbow Rocket members crawling out of the woodwork, causing trouble on Melemele. "These imposters are attempting to sully the name of Team Rocket and I will not stand for it. So your mission, when you see them, is to destroy them."

"Yes, sir!" The Rocket Trio saluted.

"We will investigate this fake Team Rocket!" Meowth said.

"Good. I trust you'll be able to handle it. I expect a full report in the future." Giovanni said. With the new mission given, the call cut off.

"…How did we miss that fake Team Rocket going around?" James asked the others.

"No clue." Jessie shrugged. "But if they think they can impersonate us and get away with it, they have another thing coming!"

.

.

Ula Ula Island. Police officer Nanu was relaxing in his small police station along with his many, many Alolan Meowths. That was when he got a phone call and reluctantly answered. "Nanu speaking."

"Hello, Nanu." The one on the other line was Giovanni. He was quite busy today.

"Ah, Giovanni." Nanu's expression grew a bit more serious and he sat up in his chair. "What are you calling for this time?"

"I've heard that there's trouble going on in Alola." Giovanni stated simply.

"Yuuuup." Nanu then reclined in his chair just as fast. "Some trouble going on in Melemele the other day. I was also told by a police friend that the Chiper Organization is making a comeback, if that's what you wanted to know."

"So the rumors are true." Giovanni chuckled faintly. "They will not last very long. Their previous attempt was snuffed out after all. This is nothing more than the weak embers from before attempting to rage on."

"Well, as far as I know, it's not on _my _island, so I can't say I care." Nanu's approach to this was as lazy as ever. So long as it didn't involve UlaUla, this Kahuna could ultimately care less about what was happening. But if he was needed, then he would step in. Right now, that just didn't seem likely. "Is that all you wanted to call about?"

"Tell me about Team Rainbow Rocket." Giovanni's request was more of a demand.

Nanu shrugged. "There's another Team Rocket aside from yours? Wouldn't know anything about that."

"I see. So they must be from another world, just as the Radiant One. Very well, that's all I needed to know." Without so much as a goodbye, Giovanni hung up.

"Man…" Nanu let out a quiet sigh. If anything, that phone call was a warning to him that things were about to get messy. "Guess I'll have to get serious soon…" What a pain, but it was his duty, so he'd do it.

.

.

The dreary area of Po Town, also known as Team Skull's base. The grunts of Team Skull were messing around as usually. K sat away from the others, looking for a replacement scarf since she lost hers in Verdant Cavern. "Ugh, those stupid trainers."

"They sure gave you a run for yer money, huh?" Tupp said.

"Shut up. You guys lost. I could've still fought." K shot back. "But it was best to cut our loses."

"At least was able to put up a fight." Plumeria said, her dislike for Tupp and his gang showing. The older sister figure of Team Skull then gave K a spare scarf. "Tryin' to hide that scar, right?"

"Yeah…" K nodded, giving Plumeria a faint smile, wrapping the scarf around her face. "Alola's Champion and those other people. They make my head hurt. I don't know why. Do I know them…?"

"If it's your amnesia, you shouldn't be thinkin' about it too hard." Plumeria replied. "I heard it just makes your head hurt."

"I guess you're right." K sighed. "Thanks."

"So, I got a question." Rapp leaned in close to K. "Why's one eye of yours green and the other red? And where did that scar come from."

This prompted K to call out her Toxapex, which immediately pinned Rapp down to the ground. "You can't just ask someone those questions out of the blue! Ugh. We may be ruffians but we aren't savages.

From the top of the staircase, Guzma watched the shenanigans happening with Team Skull. To think he was about to disband this bunch of misfits. A slight smirk curled onto his lips before he decided to leave them all be. "Heh…"

.

.

In an undisclosed location, Ein was still hard at work. He was aware that at the moment, there was only so much he could do on his own, for they were severely lacking the manpower they needed for his plans to come to fruition. "I think it's time to enact the first phase of our plan." The scientist said.

"I don't think we're gonna be able to enact anything with this four-person manpower we've got." Trudely scratched the back of his head.

Ein sneered at such an idiotic response. "I am aware of that, you buffoon. That is precisely why we _need_ more manpower."

"And what's the idea in your brain, Ein?" Miror B asked, sliding from left to right. He truly just could not sit still, even for a second.

"We'll need to execute a swift assault on the prison that is holding our fellow admins captive." Ein stated firmly. Trudely and Folly were shocked that this was Ein's go-to plan, but Miror B just laughed.

"Always shooting for the stars, going above and beyond! Now that's a groove I can get behind!" Miror B said gleefully.

"Are you two insane!?" Folly asked. "Boss, can't you see the problem with this? If we go back there _we _might get arrested! Then everything we've done will be for nothing!"

"He's right!" Trudely gave his two cents. "Isn't there an easier way that doesn't put us at risk like that?" He did not want to go to jail a second time!

"That is risk of the plan." Ein admitted. One false step and everything they worked for in secret would fall apart before it could begin. "However, this is a gamble that we must take. If we do not, we will be sitting in this dead end, and I refuse to stop making progress. I already have a list in mind of who we should rescue."

"Boys, you have to place a bit more faith in Ein." Miror B said with a slight chuckle. That chuckle only terrified Trudely and Folly since only they understood the true meaning behind it. "He's been the brains of Cipher for quite a while. If he's got a plan, then you should already know that it's a solid one."

"I'm glad you see things my way, Miror B. You've truly matured in our time apart and your eyes can see greatness when it's standing right in front of you." Ein stood up from his seat, grabbing the Z-ring he was using as focus in his research. "There's no point in delaying things. They won't expect an assault on their front doorstep, which gives us the advantage for a quick rescue mission. Now then Gentlemen, we have some companions to rescue."

.

.

Next Time: Prison Break.


	25. Chapter 25: Prison Break

The remnants Chiper had a bold plan. In order to push their plans to success, they needed to take the biggest gamble and rescue old companions for more manpower. That gamble was to raid the International Police's Prison. Thanks to the helicopter that Miror B stole in Kalos, they had a method of transportation for their small crew. While this attack was supposed to be small, there was no denying that they were ultimately launching attack against the International Police as a whole. This was a risk that could make or break Chiper for the last time. "Are we clear on the plan?" Ein asked his three companions: Miror B, Trudly, and Folly. This was a small crew and half of them were somewhat inept in Ein's eyes.

"Y-Yeah…" Trudly gave a nod. Behind his shaded glasses, he was pretty nervous, but he did believe in Miror B's plan. Much more than Folly did.

"You think this is gonna work?" Folly asked. This was the umpteenth time he asked this question. Ein could only groan at this idiot asking the same question every 30 minutes.

"Of course it will work!~" Miror B hummed. "After all, we managed to bust in here once. We can easily do it a second time!"

"You've got a lot of confidence, Boss…" Folly said with a sweat drop. If only he could have half the confidence Miror B. had. "But there are still only four of us and there's no way they didn't tighten security after our stunt…"

To that, Miror B wagged a finger, making it work with his dance moves. "Ah ah, actually, I managed to get into contact with two old friends of ours. If all goes well, there will be six of us, and even more after a successful assault. This is only the first step in my groovy goal of capturing every Pokémon in the world!"

"A lofty dream, but I will not object since it allows me one final chance…" Ein mumbled before bringing up a holographic map of the Prison. "Now then…our first order of business will be to free the Pokémon. During my time here, I noticed they treat our Pokémon well, but keep them isolated from the trainers in a surprisingly sturdy area they cannot break out of on their own. If we can cause mass panic, we can use that situation to our advantage. But in order to do that, we're going to need some distractions." That's when he looked at Trudly and Folly.

"…I somehow knew it would come to this." Trudly sighed. This was way too much work for a pair that enjoyed lazing about.

"I will have Alakazem use Teleport when we've gathered as many as we can." Ein adjusted his shades with his index finger, a sinister glint appearing. "Everyone has their assigned roles. We must be quick, swift, and careful. If Miror B. does have backup coming…"

"Give it 5 minutes! They'll be here when the beat drops and the music hits its climax!" Miror B then performed a flip, snapping his fingers.

"And will you mind telling me what role they'll play?" Ein did need to know.

"Nope!" Miror B held a coy smile. "Trust me, Ein. You'll know when they'll arrive, and when they do, you'll know exactly what to do. You're the genius, after all."

Sigh. "Right." Ein stared at the prison. "Let's begin."

.

.

"Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaah…" Such a long, heavy, dramatic sigh could only come from one person: Venus. Lady Venus was at the height of her popularity during the Regional Tournament to the point where she nearly took over the event! But after her loss to Kasumi, her popularity once again plummeted and her defeat along with Chiper made her hit rock bottom. Being cooped up in a prison cell made it hard to keep her appearance up, but she somehow managed to keep her looks. "This is torture…please; I can't deal with three square meals a day. I'm losing weight…"

Unfortunately for the both of them, the tasked to keep an eye on Venus was Lovrina, former Chiper scientist turned police after the Kalos incident. It was all she could do while they waited for Elizabeth to inform them of Chiper's whereabouts. They couldn't risk even more former members escaping. "Venus, please be quiet."

"Come onnnnn…" Venus pleaded. "Do a girl a favor and sneak me some meals! I know I needed to watch my figure but this is getting ridiculous!"

Lovrina rolled her eyes. "That's like, so impossible for me." Lovrina flipped her hair. "Now be quiet like a good prisoner, okay? That incident took me away from my work, but luckily for you I had it finished before your old friend came back."

"Why couldn't that idiot have broken _me _out! He picked Ein over the beautiful Lady Venus!" Venus huffed loudly.

"I wish he took you instead. So I wouldn't have to listen to you complain every day." Lovrina pinched the bridge of her nose. As lovely as this moment was, their time would be cut short as a loud Boomburst broke open the front doors of the prison. The alarm sounded immediately and Lovrina snapped to attention. "What in the world!?"

At the busted front gates were Trudly and his Dusknoir, along with Folly and his Exploud. They had to catch attention so Miror B and Ein could work their magic. "We're back!" Trudly said with false confidence. No one would ever think they were crazy enough to come back to the prison!

"We're back…" Folly did not have as much confidence.

"Quick, capture them!" Several officers exclaimed. They had no idea why the people who initiated a jail break would come back, but this was the best chance they had to capture them.

"Dusknoir, Trick Room!" Trudly commanded. Dusknoir spread its arms apart, the surrounding area becoming enveloped in a strange cube. Trick Room completely altered the movements of every person and Pokémon and the sudden shift threw them off guard.

"Exploud, Boomburst!" Exploud was known for being a very loud Pokémon. With the multiple sound holes all over its body, this Pokémon let out a deafening cry that turned into a destructive shockwave, blowing away any opposition while annihilating the front entrance of the prison! "Wow, that was pretty good. I knew this would work." As if.

"We're just getting started! Dusknoir, let's go!" Trudly said as he and Folly began rushing down the corridor, causing as much mayhem as they could.

Lovrina wouldn't allow this to stand for very long. She stood in front of Trudly and Folly. "Halt! You're under arr – oh you're kidding me. Miror B's lapHoundours. If you wanted a prison cell, all you had to do was ask!" As Lovrina said this, she tossed two Pokeballs into the air, calling forth her Roserade and Alolan Ninetails.

"Eeee…scary lady…" Folly took a step back.

"We can take her…!" Trudly said. They didn't even have to beat her, but Lovrina was somewhat of a higher up thus it was important they stalled her for as long as possible. Surely they could do even that much.

.

.

While Trudly and Folly distracted with a frontal assault, Miror B had his own role. While Ein went to the Pokémon yard to free the captured Pokémon belonging to the Cipher members, Miror B was the one who went to free prisoners! Not every prisoner he freed was a member of Cipher, but releasing criminals from their confinement added onto the plate that Interpol had to deal with. "Come on everyone, hit the music and let's dance!" One of his many Ludicolo were called out, releasing Hydro Pumps to break the cell doors open. This caused numerous prisoners to flood out of the cells and towards freedom.

Before Miror B could enjoy his fun too much, a Croagunk jumped forward, aiming a Poison Jab for Ludicolo, but the dancing Pokémon swiftly evaded with its dance moves. Looker grit his teeth, surprised that Miror B would actually come back and risk being arrested. "So you've come back, have you? Stop where you are now and we'll make your punishment easy."

"Punishment? You can't punish these steps!" Miror B hit a pose, his red and white afro jiggling from his movements. "Ludicolo, show them the moves with Teeter Dance!" On that cue, Ludicolo began enacting a strange dance that caught Croagunk and Looker in it too! No matter what they did, they couldn't break free from the dance. "Hit the music!"

"T-This is…!" Looker had an expression of panic on his face as he was forced to imitate Ludicolo's dance moves. To make matters worse, this odd dance confused his Croagunk, leaving it helpless against this predicament!

"Let the groove flow through you!" Miror B was enjoying himself a little too much. But as it happened, Trudly and Folly did gather a lot of attention at the front gate, and the prisoners he released distracted those who weren't dealing with the situation at hand allowing him to indulge himself and someone else in the art of dance.

.

.

The plan was going off without a hitch. A small, but calculated assault against Interpol proved effective. Everyone had their roles and it was going smoothly. They needed to be swift; however, otherwise the quality of their plan would be overrun with the quantity of police members within the building. They were still outnumbered. Ein went to the Pokémon Yard, recalling this area when he was here last, as he had frequently passed by it. "Alakazam, use Psychic on the lock." Alakazam's eyes flashed blue and it attempted to use its telekinetic powers to forcibly open the locked gate, but it was of no use. "Tch…I see…" Ein then approached the door himself, examining the lock. "An electromagnetic lock. An electric type Pokémon can't even break this; otherwise it would've been released already."

"That's right." That voice came from Rui, the girl with the eyes that saw into the darkness. "That's far enough, Ein! We have more forces than you do, so it's only a matter of time until the chaos you've created is quelled! It was very nice of you to stop by at our front door!"

Ein turned around, a grin appearing on his face. "Well well! If it isn't the former Grandmaster's little girlfriend. It's been too long, still holding up well after his foolish gambit?"

Rui clenched her hand into a fist. "Don't you dare talk about Wes that way! Just give it up, there's no way for you guys to win!" Rui reached for a Pokeball, preparing to call out Umbreon. "Umbreon, let's go-!"

"Psychic." Alakazam's eyes flashed and Rui was held in place, unable to finish tossing her Pokeball. She was in suspended animation, unable to break free against the psychic type's telekinetic grasp.

"Ghhh!" Rui squirmed, but it was of no use.

"Out of respect for Wes and his ambitions allowing me to act once more, I won't hurt you." Ein adjusted his shades. They were low on time and he couldn't afford to waste any of it. "In exchange, you're going to tell me how to open this gate."

Rui smirked. "Well, that's simple. It's on the roof, directly connected to the power grid. But…you don't have the numbers to open it, do you?" She had no issue telling him, because as it stood, their small force couldn't divide enough to account for this.

"Tch…" Ein grit his teeth. "So that's how it is…"

"Looks like you're out of luck." Rui then focused her eyes on Ein's belt. "I knew it! You have Shadow Pokémon with you too! Well, we'll be purifying those once we capture you and put Chiper to rest once and for all! You can crawl out of the grave as many times as you wish, you'll never-!" Total blackout. The power cut off. "Huh!?"

"Hm?" Ein glanced around. Despite wearing pitch black shades, he was able to use the light he installed within them to look around. "A blackout? Haha…now I get it. Miror B, you've outdone yourself this time."

Rui's eyes widened as the gate started to open. "Wait, no…!"

"Your services are no longer needed." And with a flick of his wrist, Ein commanded Alakazam to toss Rui into a nearby wall. That impact left the girl winded and she wasn't of much use after that.

.

.

On the roof of the Interpol HQ, two women were seen with a destroyed power grid. The first was a woman with long purple hair that went down to her shoulders and matching eyes, Ferma and her Ambipom; the second was a woman with short brown hair and brown eyes, Reath, along with her partner of choice, Ampharos. Two of Miror B's former Peons returned to his side to aid in this mission. "Boss, the power has been cut." Reath said.

"We did as you asked!" Ferma added. "The backup power is off too! We totally wrecked this system!"

.

.

Miror B received the message loud and clear. "Reath, Ferma, I so missed working with you! You're so much more reliable than Trudly and Folly these days!" As he said this, Ludicolo's Teeter Dance ended, allowing Looker and Croagunk to finally catch their breath.

"A total blackout." This was the worst case scenario and Looker did not anticipate Miror B having the ability to make this happen. They didn't even have back up power! "Croagunk, Poison Sting!"

"Whirlpool!" Miror B didn't even have to see to know where this was going. Ludicolo created a massive cyclone of water above its body before hurling it forward. Looker and Croagunk were at a massive disadvantage in such a narrow passageway, thus resulting in them getting swept away by the whirlpool.

"Gaaah!" Looker cried out as he was carried away.

"Phase 1 and 2 complete! Now let's boogey before we do get caught!" Miror B returned Ludicolo and made a mad dash off!

"We can't let them escape!" Looker shouted into his communicator, trying to get the assistance of any available officer to capture these people!

.

.

"I am, like, so aware of that!" Lovrina grunted. Trudly and Folly were a little tough together, but Lovrina was holding her own against them. Ninetails and Roserade were handling Exploud and Dusknoir well, but she knew that this was a stall for time that she couldn't do anything about. "This is so frustrating!"

"Between us and the roaming prisoners, this may actually work!" Folly, the one who didn't have any faith in this place, was finally starting to see the light! Actually, he could see anything since it was pitch black.

This gave Trudly an idea. "Use Gravity!" Dusknoir's body vanished into the darkness, only to be replaced with an oppressive force of gravity, Lovrina gasped as she fell to her knees, one eye clenched shut as she and her Pokémon attempted to stand. "Woo! We're doing it!"

"You're really…pissing me off…" Lovrina grit her teeth. She was about to teach these two numbskulls a lesson when a nearby wall sudden shattered with such force the roof broke! This allowed some light to pour into the pitch black building, where a silhouette stood proudly atop a Steelix.

"Ahahahaha! At long last, fortune smiles upon me! I knew Lady Luck did not forsake Lady Venus!" Venus laughed loudly while standing on her Steelix.

"You're kidding me…" Lovrina's eyes widened. This situation went from annoying to bad pretty fast.

"Steelix, it's time to repay the Police for their hospitality." This was the moment Venus had been waiting for. A year of working on someone else's schedule, no makeup, only three square meals a day? She had enough. "Flash Cannon!" Steelix breathed out a silver beam of energy that cleaved through a majority of the building, causing an explosion and fire in its wake. Because the power had been shut off completely, the sprinkler system wasn't turning on! "Ahahaha! That'll teach you to try and take Venus out of orbit!"

Trudly and Folly returned their Pokémon, hopping on Steelix as it slithered away. "Adios!"

"Gghhhh!" Lovrina couldn't believe this! But the fire was more important and they had to quell it before it spread. "Ninetails, Blizzard!"

.

.

The Prison Break was a resounding success for the remnants of Chiper. It started off with only Ein, Miror B, Trudly, and Folly at the beginning, and now? The likes of Ferma, Reath, Venus, Dakim, Ardos, Gorrigan, and Nascour rejoined their ranks. "Is this everyone?" Ein asked. They had to regroup while the police were busy dealing with the fire and escaping prisoners.

"What an impressive effort you've made." Nascour folded his arms across his chest. "But I do believe this is everyone."

"We can do a headcount later." Ardos said while glancing back at the burning building. "They will catch up to us before long."

"I agree." Ein had his Alakazam at the ready. "I had to incapacitate someone, but it was a nonissue."

"Wait, stop!" Looker was still pursuing them! He had to make sure they didn't escape, but everyone knew it was far too late to stop them.

Ein was already fully aware that their region of choice to hide away was discovered. Still, that didn't stop him from having a little fun. "Alola." And with a snap of his fingers, Alakazam used Teleport. Within the blink of an eye, they were all gone, leaving Looker to chase nothing more than air.

"Darn it!" Looker grunted. He couldn't believe this! Chiper was really about to come back in full force now.

"They got away." Lovrina huffed. "I can't believe this." How frustrating. They let Chiper slip out of their grasp after a full year! This couldn't be happening.

Meanwhile, there was one cell that had not been opened in all of the chaos. The cell belonging to Snattle, a former Chiper Admit. He heard all the commotion and was desperately waiting for someone to come rescue him. "…Surely someone will come for me. They'll recognize my immaculate leadership skills and come begging for me to lead them!" …The poor guy would be waiting quite a while for that….

.

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Next Time: Shadow Buster Squad


	26. Chapter 26: Shadow Buster Squad

The prison break was a resounding success. Ein, Miror B, Trudly, and Folly managed to rescue a sizeable force of Chiper from the hands of the International Police with the help of Miror B's former subordinates: Ferma and Reath. The likes of Nascour, Gorrigan, Venus, Ardos, and Dakim were prepared for one final attempt as the Chiper organization. Upon reaching their new Alola hideout, Venus was the first one to speak, shivering from the abnormal temperature. "Ugh, HONESTLY!? You pick the tropical island getaway to hide away in, and you pick the absolutely COLDEST place!? What is wrong with you!?"

"I don't see the issue. It's quite lovely and serene." Ein responded to Venus' complaint with a causal smile. That only irritated the diva that much more.

"So whose heads are we busting open!?" Dakim's fist slammed into his palm. He was the muscle of the organization for a reason and couldn't wait to get back to doing what he did best!

"I suspect you have some sort of plan, Ein. You wouldn't go through the trouble of rescuing us from prison if you didn't." Nascour said curiously.

"Unless he just missed the company of yours truly!" Venus hummed.

"No." Ein said.

Miror B then started to dance around as usual. "Ah, this feels like old times! The several of us bickering and arguing while discussing the plan~"

Gorrigan felt left out of this, but also didn't care. He was too busy glancing around their current HQ to care. "Hmm…" Trudly, Folly, Reath, and Ferma were too intimidated by the Admin's presence to say anything. All they could do was listen to the conversation that was happening.

"Oh, it's you." Nascour folded his arms across his chest. "It's been too long, Miror B. Did you enjoy snooping under our noses in Kalos?"

"Did you enjoy that groovy thrashing that Sinnoh's Champion gave you? That was a beat I could get behind." Miror B flashed an annoying smile while doing the robot.

"He's got you there." Dakim laughed. And then he was suddenly extremely infuriated because he remembered losing to. "AH! Those damned kids! I just remembered!"

"You mean you forgot?" Venus had a deadpanned look. "I've been clinging to revenge ever since I was thrown into that dirty slammer!" She then flipped her golden brown hair over her shoulder, letting out a haughty laugh. "But I suppose it was all right in the end. After all, I was the cause of that Kasumi girl collapsing in the end. That'll show Grace not to ever mess with me."

"And what about the pink haired one who took you out?" Ein asked.

"Oooooh! I will never forgive that bimbo for defeating me and making me look like an utter fool!" Venus growled.

"Then you're all in luck." Ein gave a wide smile while turning to his comrades. "This will be our final chance to turn the world upside down. You're all gathered here today for the purpose of pushing Neo Cipher back into the world."

"So that's what we're goin' with?" Gorrigan scratched his head like a Mankey. "Fine with me. Just tell me what I need to do and I'll CRUSH the opposition."

"Our objective is quite simple. The International Police have been onto our general location for a while; however they have been unable to pinpoint exactly where we are." Ein turned to a screen, displaying a map of Alola. "So while they are distracted, we use this time to gather data and cause a little bit of havoc to distract them. My end goal is to capture the Island Guardians and have them at our disposal. Before that, I would attempt to capture the beings known as Ultra Beasts."

"Wow, you've thought this through." Dakim said, somewhat impressed. "But what are we gonna do without Shadow Pokémon!?"

"Oh, honey, don't worry." Miror B snickered. "I ran off with _all _the Shadow Pokémon you had back in your little hideout in Kalos. You can thank me later."

"You were just trying to steal from us!" Venus snapped.

"Haven't you heard? If you love something, set it free. If it's yours, it'll return to you!" Miror B said while moon walking in place.

"I cannot stand you." Venus pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Is there anything we should be worried about on Alola?" Nascour cut right to the chase. "If the International Police are here, then it stands to reason that…"

That's when Trudly decided to speak up, but again, he was extremely intimidated in the presence of these Admins. "A-As it turns out…some of the trainers who stood in your way before are in Alola. Now, we don't know how many, or who, but we've seen that blue haired girl Elizabeth and the guy known as Marcus! So the others could be around!" They never did find out who captured the Shadow Drapion.

"Ooooh! So they _are _here!?" Venus' eyes lit up with both delight and rage. "I can't WAIT to get my revenge on all of those little brats! What's the first order of business?!"

This made Ein smirk. At long last, his dream of being able to rule the world with an iron fist could finally come to fruition. Evice was defeated by Wes, Greevil was a man who attempted to use the remains of Chiper to strike back, but in the end he was foiled by Michael, Wes was held back by his humanity and Rui, but Ein had no such weakness. This time, the organization would succeed. "The first order of business is…"

.

.

Ash and friends decided to take a relaxing day today, all gathering at the beach to have some fun! It would kill whatever tension remained and they could take the chance to just chill. The last few days had been eventful and they all deserved a chance to relax before thing inevitably picked up. While the group's Pokémon were enjoying their time at the beach, Ash, Marcus, Kiawe, Takeba, Lana, and Scott were all playing volleyball on the beach! Ash, Kiawe, and Scott were on one team, while Marcus, Lana, and Takeba were on the other! Everyone else was just watching the game play out. The game was all tied up at 4 points; whoever got the next Ash hit the ball over the net, aiming for the spot that seemed most open. "Got it!"

"Not so fast!" Marcus dove forward, hitting the ball up.

"And boom!" Takeba followed up. The two of them were in sync and it was somewhat frightening. Takeba palmed the ball over the net, not exactly aiming for anything, but the force of her strike was intimidating.

"Hit it up!" Kiawe told Ash and Scott. There was an odd fire in his eyes and that only meant one thing.

"Right…" Scott nodded, acting fast to push the ball into the air, leaving it open for Kiawe to strike.

Kiawe took a high leap into the air, rearing his arm back. He was so intense one could almost see flames blazing around his arm! It was all dramatic effect, but what he was about to unleash was anything but an effect. _**"**_This strike is the zenith of all that I am! _**INFERNO OVERDRIVE STRIKE!"**_

"What's he doing…." Takeba took a step back. She got her answer as Kiawe SLAMMED the ball as hard as he could! There was so much force there may have been a trail of flames behind it. Takeba's eyes widened and she panicked. "Oh god! I-I got it…!" She went to run, but tripped and fell into the sand. Luckily her clumsiness allowed the ball to bounce off of her and off to the side.

"Wait…!" Marcus scurried ahead, just barely managing to hit the ball into the air.

And now…it was Lana's time to shine. Her blue eyes flashed yet she was as calm and serene as the ocean. A graceful leap into the air was taken and she spun around, hitting the ball with all her might. _**"HYDRO VORTEX SLAM!" **_And to everyone's surprise, her strike was even stronger than Kiawe's! No one had the chance to react as Lana essentially overpowered Kiawe and the ball was in the sand before they realized what was going on.

"…And it's over! Lana's team wins!" Sophocles said!

"Way to go, Lana! You too, Marcus and Takeba!" Mallow clasped her hands together.

"You all did great!" Lillie smiled.

"That game came down to the wire!" Rotom added.

"…." Elizabeth and Grace just looked at each other.

"…What are these kids?" Elizabeth said. She had no idea what she just watched. She was not expecting Lana to be the 'powerhouse' of the group.

"No idea…" Grace shrugged her shoulders. Ash just made weird friends, but they were all good kids.

Kiawe was a good sport about it! But of course his defeat did include him sulking on all fours in the sand. "So close…" This wasn't the first time Lana had outdone him in some sort of physical competition. Why did it not feel like it would be the last either? Well, you know what they say: water does beat fire.

Elizabeth stretched her arms over her head. Truthfully this time off had been nice, but she knew in the back of her head that she really should've been doing her job. Well…her excuse is that they had no leads. "Well, this is fun and all…but what are we going to do about…her?" She pointed to Moon, who was sitting in a beach chair with an umbrella over it. Like everyone else, she had a swimsuit on, but she just wasn't participating with the activities with everyone. Even her Pikachu and Kommo-o had gone to mingle with the others!

"I don't want to sound rude, but why is she here…?" Takeba tilted her head. "I mean, what's the point if you're not gonna try and have fun?"

Ash crossed his arms, eyes closed as he tried to recall what Moon said. "I asked her if she wanted to come with us to the beach, and she said…"

"_Um. Sure…I don't mind. But I want to be alone…"_

"Oh Moon…" Mallow frowned. "She wants her space, but she doesn't want to be all by herself."

"I guess it's a little hard to fit in when you don't feel like you belong." Sophocles said. There were a few gazes at Moon as she kept to herself.

"I think she wants to join. She just isn't sure how." Ash nodded a few times.

"Well…we need to do something." Scott rubbed his head. "Because _that _is getting a little…"

What was he gesturing to? Moon and Lillie. They had been sneaking glances at each other the whole time. The atmosphere around them was a little awkward. Lillie was keeping her distance and Moon was keeping here, yet they were unknowingly glancing at each other every so often. Then their gazes happened to meet and everything froze…in the worst way possible. Moon's hazel eyes peered into Lillie's green. It was an awkward stare down and neither was sure how to react; did they look away and pretend not to notice? No, it was too late for that.

"…."

"…"

"…!"

At this point, they realized they had been making eye contact for far too long to ignore it, and then they both ended up looking away awkwardly. It was hard to pretend that mess didn't just happen. Elizabeth made a face. "Did anyone see how awkward that was?"

"I _felt _how awkward that was." Grace said with a sweat drop.

Moon sat up from her seat, walking off a bit towards nearby Mantine. "Hey, Mantine. Can we surf?" The Mantine made a noise akin to a yes, so Moon happily climbed atop the Mantine and the surfing began! She had to at least do something while on the beach! And she had to get away from Lillie lest they have another awkward moment.

"Ah…" Lillie didn't realize she stopped breathing during that stare down. It only hit her when she was short of breath.

That's when Takeba patted Lillie on the shoulder. "Don't worry. That was awkward for all of us."

"Oh…" That didn't make Lillie feel much better.

.

.

While riding out on the waves, Moon let out a heavy sigh. "That was awful…what was I supposed to do or say? Guh…" She still felt bad for yelling at Lillie the other day. That guilt she carried with her made things awkward for her. The situation between her and Lillie was just awkward and fragile in general. "I wish I knew how to apologize…" Despite being deep in her thoughts, she was still able to Mantine Surf like a pro! A few moments passed when she saw a big wave incoming! "Oh, that'll be fun."

"Help…!" A young boy had been separated from his parents in the water. To make matters worse, that big scary wave was coming and they wouldn't be able to swim out of it!

"Please help our son…!" The mother of the child pleaded. It turns out that a strong current caused by a water Pokémon carried the child away from his parents.

"…!" Moon turned to the child in need, then at Mantine. "Mantine, let's go!" It was just in her nature to help someone in trouble; person or Pokémon. Mantine agreed with Moon and the two sped up just as the wave was beginning to crest over. The people could see such a large wave about to crash down and suddenly they got very nervous. "Come on…"

"Is she gonna make that!?" A bystander asked worriedly.

"Please make it!" The father said.

Moon and Mantine were drawing closer to the child as the wave came down. Veering right, she passed the child, and as she did, she scooped him into her arms. "Don't worry, I got you!" The wave was still coming down, but this was no issue to Moon. She guided Mantine to the edge of the wave, performing the masterful Over the Gyarados spin! This was the second time she pulled off the most difficult stunt in Mantine Surfing, and this time even with extra weight! Her rescue had been nothing short of flawless and stylish. "Here's your child. Be more careful!"

"Of course! Thank you so much!" The mother gave Moon a smile and it was a happy reunion.

"No problem." She flashed a small smile before returning to shore, where she was getting applause from her surfing and rescue. It was embarrassing, even more so as the others ran up to her.

"Moon, that was amazing!" Lana said with sparkles in her eyes.

"Can you teach me to do that!?" Kiawe had a fire in his own.

"That was so cool!" Mallow was beaming.

"Do you just jump at the chance to give us heart attacks?" Elizabeth had to ask. It seems that Moon didn't even realize how close that wave was to crashing down on her and Mantine! They all could've fallen into the ocean!

"Moon, you were really great out there." Lillie said genuinely.

"Thanks…" Moon and Lillie ended up locking gazes again.

"…"

"…"

"…!"

And once again, they had another awkward stare down that ended with them looking away from each other frantically.

"…That's so awkward." Marcus sighed.

Whatever awkward tension in the air would have to wait. Cue Lovrina in a two piece marching across the beach, practically tackling Elizabeth down to the ground. "THERE YOU ARE!"

"AH!" Elizabeth cried out from the sudden assault. "Why are you here!?"

"Who's this?" Lana tilted her head. Introductions were in order.

Lovrina crossed her arms over her chest, practically scowling at Elizabeth. "We found Chiper."

"Oh, really?!" Elizabeth's face lit up. "I guess that means you don't need me anymo-"

"They pulled off a successful prison break at HQ and recovered several key members." Lovrina finished.

That's when Elizabeth started sweating. "Oh. I…I see." And the bad feeling she had earlier was coming back to bite her. "That would be a problem, huh…?"

"So what _were _you doing this whole time?" Lovrina's piercing gaze went right into Elizabeth's soul. She wasn't happy.

"…I was…working…" Elizabeth trailed off. "Dang, this really is a problem. Cynthia's never going to forgive me if I screw up this badly! I can't ask her on a date properly if I can't even do the one thing she asked of me!"

"…Is that what she's concerned about?" Kiawe's jaw dropped.

"Her priorities are not in the right places sometimes." Takeba said with her index finger extended.

Next came Rui, panting because Lovrina made a mad dash all the way to the airport to hunt Elizabeth. "Y-You…really need to…slow down…" Rui was out of breath. She collapsed.

"Another one." Moon blinked slowly.

"Hi!" Ash waved to his two friends.

"Oh…hey Ash…" Rui waved weakly.

Lovrina pinched the bridge of her nose. "You are like, so, unbelievable. I'll cut to the chase. I'm Lovrina and this is Rui; we're members of the International Police and we're hunting Chiper. We're the Shadow Buster Squad, a unit specifically created to hunt and destroy Chiper! And you're a member too!" She pointed at Elizabeth.

"Right…where's Michael?" Elizabeth asked.

"That twerp's probably grounded or something." Lovrina scoffed, pulling Elizabeth by the arm. "ANYWAY! We have a lot of work to do in Alola now, so you better hurry up and get dressed! Your fun in the sun ends now!"

"Fun in the sun!?" Elizabeth could not believe what she was hearing. "This sun has attempted to murder me on 15 different occasions! The only reason I'm not cooked to a crisp on this beach is because Lillie gave me sunscreen!"

"It's true. She looked like she was great agony." Lillie pointed out.

This was the part where Lovrina noticed Ash, his Alola friends, and the others. "Huh. This is a bigger group than I was expecting, but it works perfectly. For the time being, Ash, you and your friends are a part of the Shadow Buster Squad as well!"

"That's perfect! We were waiting to track them down and take them out anyway." Ash gave a firm nod.

Lovrina's lips then curled into a sly grin. Normally she wouldn't get kids involved in a top secret mission, but since it was Ash and his friends already seemed informed of the situation, she couldn't exactly leave them out of it. "Well well, Alola's already starting off to a great start. Get dressed and come with me. We have a debriefing to do."

Moon was somewhat out of the loop again, just watching Lovrina and Rui. The business with Chiper almost slipped her mind since she had been caught up in her own situation. The more she thought about it, the more she couldn't help but wonder just how her Alola was doing with Team Rainbow Rocket roaming about. How everyone back home was doing. She lagged behind the others while there was but one thought on her mind now. _"I hope they're all right…" _

.

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Next Time: Ultra Alola.


	27. Chapter 27: Ultra Alola

"_I had no right asking her for help that day…"_

A panicked Lillie was standing at the Mahalo Trail, frantically glancing back between the bridge and the trail behind her. It only took one second of carelessness for Nebby to slip out of her bag and onto the bridge where it found itself in trouble; cowering while a trio of Spearow circled around it from above. "Nebby…!" She wanted to help, but she was too scared.

That was when an unfamiliar girl arrived; a girl about her age, maybe a year older. She had wandered up the trail only to see Lillie in a panic. Her hazel eyes held a curious and somewhat concerned stare. "Is something wrong…?"

"H-Help…!" Lillie pleaded. "N-Nebby's trapped on the bridge and I…I want to help, but I'm too scared…!" She felt so pathetic for having to admit this. She didn't have the courage herself to save Cosmog, which is why she had to ask someone. It was lucky that this girl showed up when she did, but there was no guarantee that she would even help.

The girl looked at Lillie, immediately noticing the high levels of destress on her face. She then glanced at the bridge, noticing the unfamiliar Pokémon being attacked by Spearow. "Okay, wait right here."

"H-Huh?" Lillie was taken aback. This girl was really going to help. "B-Be careful!"

"_I was frightened and overwhelmed. I didn't know what else to do, but there she was, acting so brave for the sake of someone she didn't even know…"_

The girl made her way onto the bridge, crouching down to shield Nebby with her body. Now that she had gotten this far, she was drawing a blank on what exactly to do next. She didn't have a Pokémon of her own so she was a sitting Ducklet against these Spearow. "Okay. You made it this far and now you don't have a plan B. Excellent work…"

Nebby was growing increasingly uncomfortable. Eventually it couldn't withstand the stress it was under and let out a cry, causing a shockwave to erupt from its body. As a result, the Spearow were frightened off, the bridge broke, and the girl was now falling towards the water with Nebby in her arms.

"AHHHH!" The girl cried out.

Lillie's eyes widened in fear at what transpired before her. "No…!"

In that moment, a streak of lightning flew by, whisking the girl and Nebby from the sky and bringing them to safety. It all happened so quickly no one realized what happened, but they were standing in the presence of Tapu Koko, the island guardian of Melemele Island. Lille and the girl were absolutely stunned. Tapu Koko left some strange black stone near the girl before flying off like nothing happened, just leaving them in awe. "…What just happened!?"

"That was Tapu Koko…" Lillie was in shock. In all of the time she spent on Melemele, she didn't even have the chance to see it once, yet it arrived to rescue this girl and Nebby in their time of need.

"Tapu…Koko…?" The girl shook her head. She seemed bewildered, but ultimately shrugged it off and handed Nebby back to Lillie. "Anyway, this is yours, right?" Nebby was pretty thankful since it recognized that the girl saved it.

"T-Thank you so much." Lillie offered a meek smile before turning her attention to Nebby. "How many times do I have to tell you to stay in the bag? You can't let people see you!" After scolding the curious Cosmog, she carefully placed it back in the bag where it belonged.

The girl sat down on the ground, letting out an exhausted sigh. "One hour into landing in Alola and I'm already falling off bridges. Mom is going to throw a fit when I tell her this."

"One hour into…you're new to Alola?" Lillie tilted her head.

"Yeah. I moved here from Kanto…" The girl said, begrudgingly. "Oh, I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Moon."

"Moon? It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Lillie!" Lillie gave a smile. "Again, thank you so much for saving Nebby! I…was too scared to move. And you rushed in to help and almost got hurt."

Moon waved a hand dismissively. "It was no big deal. Er…although, to tell you the truth. I was terrified that whole time. Heights scare me. Especially falling from them."

Lillie's green eyes widened. So this brave girl was actually terrified the whole time!? Furthermore, she was acting so casual about it. Now that she thought about it, it was incredibly reckless and made her sweat. "I'm jealous that you were able to muster up the courage to act."

"Eh?" Moon tilted her head. "My dad once told me that it's important to help people, so I just did what he told me. I didn't really think about what to do next until I got stuck."

"Ah…" Lillie started to sweat some more. This girl was…

"_So reckless. So brave. I was jealous, but I admired it at the same time…"_

Moon then sat up and dusted herself off, picking up that strange rock Tapu Koko left by her side. "Oh, right! The Professor was looking for you! We should go back together, okay?"

"Ah, right." Lillie nodded and followed behind Moon.

"_That was the day we first met…"_

.

.

"_Moon was always so full of energy. She brightened Alola just by being there."_

Lillie had just finished showing Moon where the Pokémon Center was located in Hau'oli City. Next was the clothing shop, which made Lillie feel a bit apprehensive. "Say, Moon…" Lillie had to figure out how to ask this question would sounding too odd. "Do you pick out your own clothes?"

"Mhm!" Moon responded with a nod. "Have for a while now. I think what I have now is good for me." She then gestured to her red hat. "This hat is one of a kind, though. My dad made it for me when I was younger and it still fits, haha…"

"Your dad…" Lillie trailed off for several reasons; one, she thought about her own father who had gone missing when she was young; two, whenever the topic came to Moon's father, she sort of brushed aside any potential follow up questions, and three…she couldn't help but envy how independent Moon was. "I see. I still wear the clothes my mother prepared for me."

Moon held her arms behind her back, leaning in with a smile. "There's nothing wrong with that. When you're ready to step out of those clothes, it just means you've grown!"

"Moon…"

"_It was so strange. She didn't know the slightest thing about what was going on with my mother or my family, but her words stuck with me for the longest time…"_

.

.

"_Moon was an incredible trainer, even after she just got her first Pokémon. Before anyone knew it, she was already challenging Hala in a Grand Trial! But as strong as Moon was getting, she had one flaw that was buried deep into her psyche: self-confidence. For someone who could inspire others so easily, she had so much self-doubt and feared failure…"_

Moon's Dartrix's Breakneck Blitz failed against Hala's Hariyama. The battle was growing increasingly tense but Moon's confidence crumbled. Even with her training, performing a Z-move just didn't click with her as fast as it did with others. "Ah…"

"MOON!" Lillie shouted at the top of her lungs. "YOU CAN DO IT! THIS BATTLE ISN'T OVER YET!" She honestly had no idea if her words of encouragement had any effect, but she knew how cornered Moon felt. After all Moon had done to inspire her during their time of knowing each other, Lillie felt that she had to do the same in any way she could.

"Lillie…" Moon glanced over her shoulder to glance at Lillie. The spark of confidence returned to her eyes and she nodded. "Right! Let's go, Dartrix! This fight isn't over yet!" Lillie's encouragement gave Moon the boost she needed to clear the battle and her very first Grand Trial!

By the time the battle was over, Lillie was rushing towards Moon excitedly. "Moon, you did it!" And before she knew it, she threw her arms around Moon for a hug.

Moon returned the hug, giving Lillie a soft smile. "Thanks to you. I thought I was done for up there, you know…"

"Nonsense. I just gave you a little push. Right Nebby?" Lillie glanced into the bag, where it gave a 'pew' sound in response. "I'll support you in all your endeavors, don't worry. That's what friends do, right?"

"Mhm. I'll do the same for you!" Moon said with her usual great big smile.

.

.

"_Before I knew it, I was trying to be like Moon. I wasn't a trainer myself, but sometimes I'd pretend with Nebby that we were in a battle. She caught me imitating her one time and it was really embarrassing, but she told me that I'd probably make a great trainer one day. The Professor and his wife were so kind in allowing me to stay with them after I ran away from home, but I didn't have anyone to connect with since Gladion wasn't around. I learned that Moon was the same and maybe that's why we bonded so quickly. But even then…she was always doing the most for me. No matter how much I wanted to be like her, I couldn't. All I could do was wait for her and the others to save me at Aether Paradise. Because of me, Nebby was unresponsive and hurt bad, and my mother jumped into Ultra Space. I decided that I couldn't be such a weak link anymore. I had to find my mother, tell her how I felt, and drag her back home even if she was kicking and screaming! And Moon was with me the whole way…"_

The Sun Flute was given to Moon and Lillie by Gladion. In order to complete the ritual in Vast Poni Canyon, they needed to retrieve the Moon Flute. In order to do this, they needed to travel to Exeguttor Island. When they got there, however, it was night time and started to rain pretty badly. "Oh…it started to rain."

"We can't stay in this rain…" Moon glanced around, noticing a little enclave not too far away. "This way!" And that is where the pair escaped to to hide away from the rain. They managed to escape before the rain picked up even more.

There was a moment of silence as the rain fell. This spurred one of Lillie's memories. "Seeing this rain…reminds me of a time when I was little. I'd seen it in a move; a man singing and dancing in the rain. It captivated me so much that I wanted to try it for myself. My mother was shocked when she saw me and ran out into the rain without an umbrella and then…she smiled and started to dance with me. Of course we both caught colds after that. She let me sleep in her big bed with her. I was so happy I kept waking her up again and again." Lillie's reminiscent smile faded, replaced with a melancholy frown. "But then she changed and all she cared about were the Ultra Beast. Null and Nebby, they suffered so much and I couldn't do anything to save them."

Moon listened to Lillie's story while leaning against the wall. "Lillie…"

Lillie then turned to Moon. "But you know what, Moon? Whenever I feel like there's nothing I can do, you seem to show up and…you do something. Every time you've shown me that it's possible…to do something. Even the first time we met, Nebby was in danger and all I could do was look on in horror. Even at Aether Paradise, all I could do was wait for you and the others to save me…"

Moon faced Lillie with her usual smile. "It's not so one sided. When I feel like I _can't _do something…you're always there to tell me I can. I don't know what I'd do without you, Lillie. You're really important to me and I'll always be there for you. That's why I'm with you all the way; we're going to fix Nebby, confront your Mom, and bring her back kicking and screaming no matter what! Because whatever we do, we'll take it on together!"

"Moon…" Lillie was taken aback.

"I…!"

The both of them spoke at the same time. It seemed as if they wanted to say something but felt too awkward about it. Lillie cleared her throat and changed the subject. "What are you going to do…when your Island Challenge is over?"

"Er…I…I don't know." Moon rubbed the back of her head. "I haven't really thought about it."

"I think…I'd like to become a trainer and travel with you, Moon." Lillie said.

"….Lillie…I…I'd like that a lot." Moon had a pink tint on her cheeks. Right after that, the rain slowly began to let up.

"Ah!" Lillie ran outside into the clear skies, where a rainbow was now overhead. "I guess there are some good omens, wouldn't you say?"

"_Everything only went up from that moment. We found the Moon Flute and travelled to Vast Poni Canyon, where Nebby revealed its true power and became Lunala. We were able to rescue my mother and bring her back home…and Moon just continued to get stronger and stronger from that point on. I wanted to travel with her, but there was no hiding the fact that we were so far apart in ability…"_

.

.

Fast forward to the present day. Aether Paradise was taken over by Team Rainbow Rocket. Lillie and Lusamine were barely able to escape Giovanni's clutches thanks to the estranged scientist Colress and former Team Skull leader, Guzma. With the Paradise loss, they had no choice but to hide away at Moon's home. Hau and Professor Kukui were already there, anxiously waiting their return for better or worse. It was all over the news, so when Lillie and Lusamine arrived, Moon's mother was understandably worried. "Oh, Lillie! Lusamine…where's Moon?"

Lillie immediately looked away, clenching a hand into a fist. There were tears in the corners of her eyes; she had been trying not to cry this entire time but was on the verge of collapsing. "I'm….I'm sorry…"

"What happened!?" Hau asked.

"She threw herself in harm's way to protect me…to protect Alola. She was thrown into an Ultra Wormhole that leads to who knows where!" Lillie choked out. "If it wasn't for her, Mother and I wouldn't have been able to escape when things got dangerous. I wasn't…strong enough to help her at all. All I did was get in the way!"

"That girl was entirely too reckless!" Lusamine scoffed. "Along with her went Team Rainbow Rocket's only true way to expand their influence beyond Alola…"

"It was thanks to that that we were able to escape, Mother!" Lillie shouted in her fit of anger. "So you should be thankful instead of criticizing her actions!" Even after all this time, their relationship wasn't great. It was healing, but an incident like this was no help to it.

"Now let's calm down…" Kukui tried to ease the situation.

Lusamine looked away. "…I didn't mean it like that. I'm thankful for everything Moon's done, I just…" Lillie didn't want to hear anymore and scurried off into Moon's room, slamming the door behind her.

"Moon…" Moon's mother was understandably distraught. More so than anyone could understand.

"So what do we do next?" Hau asked. "We have to stop Rainbow Rocket before they do anything else!"

"He's right." Kukui crossed his arms. "But the Aether Paradise is on complete lockdown now. The Island Kahunas and Elite 4 are preparing do what they can to take the fight to Team Rainbow Rocket. I don't know if we can rely on the Island Guardians just yet…it might not have reached the point where they feel they have to be involved. Hopefully we can avoid that as well."

"That kid did cripple most of Rainbow Rocket before she was ejected out…" Guzma did not read the room at all. "So we can crush the rest of 'em!"

"Not so fast, Guzma." Lusamine shook her head. "We can't just walk in there. At worst they've probably recovered a sizeable force, even though Moon did remove those Admins from our world. But Giovanni is still a threat. I don't know what Pokémon he had on him lying in wait, but it was extremely powerful. He and Moon were in the midst of their battle before things turned sour. If we walk into the Paradise unprepared, it could be the end." It pained Lusamine to say this. Aether was everything to her; it was where she met her husband and where her life truly began. To have it wretched out of her hands…. "If Gladion weren't on his own journey, we'd have more fire power…"

"So we're just supposed to sit here and look cute until they decide they wanna do something!?" Guzma groaned. "That ain't my style!"

Lillie sat on the bed, all kinds of frustrated with herself. "All I did was get in the way." It was a horrible memory that stuck in her mind. She pulled out the Sun Flute from her bag, letting out a heavy sigh. "I wanted to catch up to you, but all I did was hold you back and you got hurt because of me…" She then held out a Pokeball, staring into it intently. "Nebby…what should I do?"

.

.

"_I wanted to get stronger. Watching Moon inspired me. She became so strong; the strongest Trainer in all of Alola. The whole region celebrated her victory and milestone in its history. I knew I couldn't be like her the way I was now. I had two things I needed to do: I had to go to help my mother recover from the illness the Ultra Beast left her with and I had to become a trainer. And yet…"_

Lillie stood at the dock, waiting for her boat to arrive. It was early in the morning so she thought she could get away with sneaking off. It felt like forever and she was growing anxious. Kukui was the only one seeing her off. "You know, Lillie. Kanto's is a long way away from here. Try to not let the jet lag hit you too hard." He then shook his head. "Burnet's, well…she said she'd be too sad to go. She wouldn't even come out with me. I know it's a lot to ask, but please forgive her this one time, all right?"

"Lillie!" The voices that called out to her were Hau and Moon.

Darn it. She wasn't able to leave fast enough. Lillie faced her two friends with a sad smile. "Hi…"

"W-Were you really just going to up and leave without saying anything!?" Hau was panting for air. Between running to Moon's house to tell her the news, and sprinting with her back to the dock, he was understandably winded.

"I'm sorry." Lillie said. "This is already hard enough, but I've decided that I'm going to Kanto. I heard there's someone there who could help my mother…and then I'm going to become a trainer. I'm going to meet all kinds of Pokémon and travel around like we did for your Island Challenge! Of course I'm sad to leave Alola, but I have to do this."

"….." Moon didn't say a word. While she tried to keep a straight face, one could see her emotions slipping through. "So this is what you were hiding from me…you were going to leave and not say anything…?"

"…." Lillie glanced away. "Moon, I…it's not…" This was precisely what she was trying to avoid. Shaking her head, she handed a Clefairy Doll to Moon. "H-Here. I want you to have this. I know it's a little worn, but that's because it's my most treasured possession."

Moon accepted the doll, wrapping her arms around it. "Lillie…you can't go. I…" A horn blared, cutting Moon off. The ship was here and it was time to go.

"I…I have to go now. B-Bye, Moon." Lillie flashed a quick, somber smile before hurrying onto the boat. Not only did she try to leave without saying goodbye, but that goodbye was utterly awful and she knew it. She did wave as Kukui and Hau waved her off, but she saw Moon not moving.

"…." Moon coiled her arms around the doll as she watched Lillie leave her behind. "I thought we were supposed to do everything together…? Was I not good enough…?" For the first time in a long time, Moon started to cry, clutching onto the doll Lillie left behind.

Even from this distance, Lillie could see it. It made her heart sink and she was glad that she was only moving farther away. "…I'm sorry, Moon…"

"_I had so many things I wanted to say, but I just…couldn't."_

.

.

_Months passed. Mother was finally cured from her illness and we were able to return to Alola. Gladion had taken over Aether during that time, but when we returned, Mother returned to her position and Gladion went on his own journey. Moon was really busy those days, but I tried to surprise her."_

Moon was fast asleep in. The last few days were running her to exhaustion and she finally had a break. The sleeping girl cuddled with the Clefairy Doll since it helped her sleep. "Zzz…" There was a knock on her door, causing her to stir. She didn't want to wake and up and just grumbled. "I'm not awake…"

Lillie crept around the corner, staring at Moon. "Are you sure?"

That voiced caused Moon to lift her head up. She was groggy and her vision was adjusting but… "Lillie…? Am I dreaming again?"

Lillie shook her head. "No, you're not. I'm back, Moon."

"I…welcome back." Moon rubbed her arm. Of course she was excited to see Lillie, but she wasn't exactly over their awkward farewell. This reunion wasn't going the way she expected. She had rushed to hug Lillie in her dreams numerous times, but now that it was actually happening…

"….." Lille felt the same way. Things were not going as she hoped, even though she knew she was entirely to blame. "I'm not going away again, I promise. Mother is better and I even became a trainer. I'd really like to battle you soon, Moon. So you can see how far I've come."

"Oh, I…I'd like that soon." Moon flashed a tired smile. "Nebby's missed you too. I guess we have a lot to catch up on…I'd like to hear about your journey…"

"_It didn't feel the same. I realized that as soon as I saw her again. The feelings were still there, but we just couldn't communicate the same like before."_

.

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"_And then that horrid day arrived. The day Team Rainbow Rocket invaded Alola. Ultra Wormholes opened all over Aether and they took over so fast. It was all Faba's fault. Moon and I beat some sense into him later, but we had to save Mother and the others from this attack. We had help from Guzma of all people…well, Moon had help. I was only able to help a little bit. Moon did most of the work. That scary man Ghetsis took me hostage after he lost…I'd never seen Moon look so angry before. Was it at me for holding her back? I talked so much about wanting to become stronger, but in the end, I wasn't able to do anything. That man Colress helped us out and we were able to reach the leader of Team Rainbow Rocket…"_

Giovanni. "I've never had a child like you stand up to me before. They've all fallen. What do you hope to accomplish?" Giovanni's Nidoking was in fierce combat with Moon's Decidueye. "I will expand my Empire beyond this world and further beyond.

"I'm not letting you invade my home for your own personal gain!" Moon exclaimed.

"You may have defeated the others, but you should know that I'm far above them. No one else had the leadership to unite them under a single roof." When in truth, Giovanni was just letting the do as they please under his banner.

While Moon and Giovanni were battling, Lillie rushed over to Lusamine to shake her awake. "Mother…! Mother wake up!"

"Nng…" Lusamine groaned. "What happened?"

"Aether was attacked! But we have to help Moon somehow!" Lillie said.

Lusamine snapped out of her grogginess, looking around before noticing the machine that Faba had left on. "That machine! If we remove the key it will shut down. They won't be able to reliably open Ultra Wormholes." And effectively it would put a wrench in Giovanni's plans.

"Okay!" Lillie then rushed over to the machine. It was fairly simple to take the key out, but as she did, there was a chain reaction and as luck would have it, an Ultra Wormhole opened up a few yards to her left. It was already drawing her in and she didn't have much to hold onto. "Ah…!"

"Lillie!" Lusamine cried out.

"Huh!?" Moon snapped away from the battle instantly, eyes wide at what she was looking at. "Lillie!" And without thinking, she immediately ran towards Lillie to try and save her.

Giovanni turned, eyes narrowing as Lillie attempted to throw a wrench in his schemes. He wouldn't be thwarted by a child! "Nidoking. Flamethrower." This was aimed right at Lillie. Giovanni didn't care who or what was in his path, he'd stomp them out all the same.

There was hardly any time to act. Lillie could only stare wide eyed at the attack coming her way. But that was when Moon used her body to shield her! The flamethrower hit Moon directly in the back, causing her to cry out in pain. "M-MOON…!?"

That hurt a lot. There was steam coming from Moon's back and she nearly passed out on the spot, but as she fell, she held Lillie's hand, taking the key from her. "I told you…I'd…protect you…right…?" As Moon's vision started to fade, she managed to throw a Pokeball out, calling forth Lunala. "Nebby…Decidueye…keep her safe…" She passed out, now falling to the pull of the Ultra Wormhole.

Of course Lillie wasn't just going to let this happen. She forced herself up, rushing after Moon with a hand extended. That Wormhole led to who knows where. There was a strong chance Moon wouldn't come back if she went through it! "NO!" Lillie reached out to grab Moon, but she was too late. She grazed Moon's fingertips with her own and the girl fell through the hole, which led to it closing. "…!"

Giovanni sucked his teeth in annoyance. "A minor setback. We'll deal with these two."

That's when Lunala let out a fierce cry, holding its wings out to resemble a full moon. Nebby released a full powered Moongeist Beam that sliced through a section of Aether Paradise, causing a large explosion that shook the island facility. The damage wasn't appreciated but it did serve as a suitable distraction. There was smoke everywhere and someone could've been injured. "W-We have to go…" Lillie choked.

"Don't let them escape!" Giovanni commanded. He couldn't allow anyone to think that they could just interfere with his plans and get away with it.

.

.

"How pathetic can I be?" Lillie's mind couldn't erase those events. She thought she was strong enough to be helpful, but in the end, she just brought trouble and got Moon hurt. "All I did was get in the way…."

Lusamine quietly opened the door. She wasn't sure how to approach Lillie, but she knew she had to do _something_. "…She wouldn't want you to beat yourself over this. She protected you of her own volition."

"I wanted to get strong so I could protect her." Lillie's head lowered. "But instead, I got her hurt. I haven't…gotten stronger at all."

"That…isn't true." Lusamine shook her head. "You've grown, Lillie. I know that and you know that. Even if you two were in a rough patch, she still put herself at risk as usual to help you. Because of that, you were able to help us escape and plan another fight."

"But I…" Lillie frowned. "She could be…"

"Can you honestly tell me that you think she's not okay?" Lusamine placed her hands on her hips. "That girl can do the impossible. Even if she's in a rough situation, she's always made it out. She wouldn't want us to worry about her too much and you know that."

Lillie did know that to be true. At the end of the day, Moon was strong. Just as strong as Lillie wanted to be. "It's not…impossible." Lillie mumbled. "She's always done something even when it looks like nothing can be done. I…That's the kind of strength I've always wanted! I don't think winning against Team Rocket is impossible!"

Lusamine held a slight smile. "That's why we have one chance to make this count. Knowing Moon, she's probably doing all she can to get back home and fight with us again."

"We have the strength to do something." Lillie looked out the window. She did believe that Moon was all right somewhere. "Don't worry, Moon. We'll hold and fight…and when you get home, you'll have a safe Alola to return to, I promise. I'll do everything in my power to ensure that I can welcome you home when a smile. And then…I'll make sure that we can go back to how we used to be."

.

.

Next Time: Debriefing.

** This is the cumulative 100th chapter of the Pokémon Series I've been writing! It's a nice milestone and I want to thank you all for your support and reading! Hope you continue to enjoy the story as the action will soon begin to pickup!


	28. Chapter 28: Debriefing

"Hey, Moon. Are you paying attention?" Lana was waving a hand in front of Moon's face. It looked like she had zoned out.

Moon blinked a few times. "Huh? Oh, uhm…yes?" She snapped back to reality but it was clear she was lost on what the current topic was. The group had been taken by Lovrina and Rui to a hotel room, where the two members of the International Police planned to inform them of the current situation with Chiper…since Liz had failed to.

Lovrina pointed at Moon. "So…this is the one from an entirely different world, yeah? That's like, so, out of this world. Hope this kid hasn't been a bad influence or anything on you." She pointed at Ash.

"I haven't done anything!" Ash said.

"You're reckless." Rui retorted. Which was a true statement and not one Ash could deny. Everyone else was nodding in agreement.

"Well, in his defense…" Elizabeth pointed at Moon. "She's been reckless since she got here. I don't think he's at fault for that one."

"Please stop pointing at me…" Moon already felt out of place and they were just making a bigger deal about it.

"Right, moving on." Lovrina clapped her hands together. This was just the cue for Rui to turn on the projector that displayed the current state of Chiper to their knowledge. "As I'm sure you all are aware, the organization Chiper is yet again attempting to make another stand. We had them all firmly behind bars until a few weeks ago, where the rogue man Miror B decided it would be fun to break the scientist, Ein out of prison."

"We've been told this much." Kiawe said. "We encountered a Shadow Pokémon a while ago."

"It attacked Moon and I…" Lillie rubbed her arm. To think that getting attacked by Rainbow Rocket and a Shadow Pokémon were two completely separate incidents they just happened to be a part of.

"And it has been purified." Lovrina had said Drapion's pokeball in her hand. "Unfortunately we were unable to discern their current location with this one. At the very least we have the means to combat their Shadow Pokémon, but it's not enough if we can't stop them entirely. Even worse…if they attempt to dive back into Shadow Trainers, it could be extremely bad."

"Shadow Trainers…?" Mallow tilted her head. "I think we've heard about that?"

Rui lifted her index finger up. "Shadow Trainers were Cipher's prototype at using humans as weapons."

"Oh right…they did that to your friend, didn't they…?" Mallow turned to Marcus and Grace, who nodded.

"Ah, so you've heard." Lovrina twirled a strand of pink hair around her finger. "So, like, Shadow Trainer are a very bad concept. With just one person they were able to do a considerable amount of damage to Kalos. To put it simply, it's a dangerous experiment…and I'm the one who created it."

"W-What?" Sophocles was shocked to hear that. A member of the Police being responsible for this?

"Hey, hold on!" Lovrina held a hand up. "It's not something I'm proud of now. That is why I'm making amends to fix the things I've brought into the world. So I'm asking for your cooperation because they are threatening your region and we need all the help we need to stop them."

"You already know that we're going to help." Takeba gave a wink.

"Yes. We cannot allow Cipher to do as they please a second time." Scott crossed his arms.

"And we're in too!" Ash could easily speak for his friends too. There was no way they would allow anyone to have their way with Alola. "Right guys!"

"Yeah!" Everyone but Moon said.

"…." Moon rubbed her arm. It wasn't her place to say anything since this Alola wasn't hers. Did she even have the right to try and protect it after failing her own?

Lillie glanced over at Moon, frowning. "Moon…"

"Your assistance is greatly appreciated!" Rui clasped her hands together, the Plusle on her shoulder doing the same. "With a force this big, we can't lose to Cipher!"

"We'll give it our all!" Lana said with a determined grin.

"So how bad was the prison break?" Elizabeth asked. "I know it's loosely my fault for not finding them as fast as I could…"

"Pretty bad." Lovrina pointed to the screen. It displayed the profiles of Venus, Goriggan, Dakim, Nascour, and Ardos. "They managed to escape with nearly every Admin, barring Snattle, poor guy. Still, these trainers are dangerous individuals."

"Ugh, Venus." Elizabeth nearly gagged. "I was hoping I'd never have to see her ugly mug again."

"You're telling me!" Takeba subconsciously pulled at her own hair. "She was so rough with me. Not to mention…"

Grace just had a smile. "No, this is fine. She and I have some unfinished business, so I can work with this." That smile of hers was not a happy one and it was concerning.

"That one guy looks pretty big…" Kiawe pointed at Dakim.

"That's Dakim." Scott said. "The muscle of Cipher. A skilled Pokémon trainer, but be careful. Unlike the others, he will attempt to out muscle you if he's in a bad situation. He's extremely powerful in his own right."

"He threw Liz and I down a flight of stairs like nothing…" Marcus rubbed the back of his head.

"Why'd you have to remind me of that…" Elizabeth groaned.

"On top of those five, we still have Miror B, Ein, Trudly, Folly, and two of his associates to deal with it." Rui said. "Ferma and Reath. The size of their operation is still relatively small compared to Kalos, but if we allow them any more space, it could be extremely dangerous."

"So we have to really find them and take them down before they can get momentum! Ha, count me in!" Kiawe said confidently.

"The problem is…where are we going to look? They could be anywhere." Lillie did ask an important question.

"I feel like I've been all over Melemele Island…and I haven't seen a single suspicious thing." Moon chimed in quietly.

"Same, actually!" Elziabeth added. "I saw one of Miror B's people in Hau'oli, but he slipped away. After all the looking around I _have _done, I can conclude that they aren't on this island."

"So you have been doing something at least." Lovrina crossed her arms, now bringing up a map of Alola. "All right then. We can cross Melemele off the list in that case. So that still leaves us with Akala, Ula'ula, and Poni Island. That's a lot of ground to cover."

"But there are a lot of us!" Sophocles said. "Don't worry; we have ways to cover a lot of ground fast. "Just say the word and we're ready to!"

"He's right!" Rotom said.

"…Is that a talking Rotom?" Lovrina just now realized what she was looking at. They had introductions earlier yet she somehow missed this.

.

Just outside of the hotel, Jessie, James, and Meowth were eavesdropping outside the wall. When they spotted Lovrina and Rui earlier, they knew that they had to listen in on what these members of Interpol were up to! And now they knew. "So Cipher's coming back in full swing…" James said quietly.

"The boss was right. They're trying to steal Team Rocket's glory!" Meowth growled. Even though their mission was also to deal with Team Rainbow Rocket, they had no way of doing that right now. So they focused their attention on Cipher's return. They stood for righteous evil, not pure evil like that organization proved they were capable of.

"If they try subjugating more people and Pokémon to those evil experiments of theirs it will be trouble." Jessie still remembered what Cipher was able to do with just Kasumi. It wasn't something she thought back on fondly. "It's up to Team Rocket to put an end to this. If the Police were trounced so easily, then clearly it takes the bad guys to beat bad guys!"

"Wobbefett!" Wobbefett saluted, but as soon as it let out its loud cry, Jessie had to place her hands against its mouth to silence it.

"Ssssh!"

.

.

"So what are we waiting for?!" Dakim asked. "Let's go cause some havoc right now!"

"Yes, I need to do _something_," Venus was rubbing her arms to keep warm. "This chill is terribly dreadful and if I don't warm up soon I'm afraid I'll turn into an Eiscue!"

"Before we can begin, there is something you all must be aware of." Ein gestured to the screen, pulling up the results of the Alola League; more specifically, the top 8 trainers: Ash, Kiawe, Gladion, Guzma, Lana, Sophocles, Hau, and Jamesio (James). "These are the top 8 trainers within the Manalo Conference, the Alola League. They could very well pose a threat to us, and chances are that they will try to stop us in one way or another."

"And?" Dakim scoffed.

"Wait a second…" Venus narrowed her eyes before pointing at Ash. "That brat! Why is he here?!"

"Supposedly, he's the champion of the Alola League." Ein said, pushing his glasses up.

"Are you serious?!" Venus gasped. "That kid won the regional tournament and the Alola League!? Grrrr!"

"That child was a thorn in our operation." Nascour crossed his arms over his chest. "And he just so happens to be in Alola now too, is that right?"

"Moreover, his group of friends all landed within the top 16 of the tournament." Ein said. The ones who didn't make top 8 were Lillie and Mallow, but he had no issues putting up the images used from the tournament. "As we're well aware, that child interfered with our plans before. So we cannot let the same mistake happen a second time. He and his friends are the biggest threat to our operation. Also..." An image of Kukui appeared, also known as the Masked Royal. "Apparently this man, Professor Kukui, is known as the Masked Royal, one of Alola's strongest trainers. We should be weary of him, but I am currently discerning the proper way to keep him out of our way."

"Getting our groove stopped by a punk child like that? I can't fathom allowing that to happen!" Miror B said, speaking freely since he wasn't really involved in the previous incident. But he did remember battling Ash once. To think that kid managed to make such strides.

"Also," Ferma held up a dossier. "It goes without saying, but the Island Kahunas are also dangerous individuals. I don't think we'll want to plan any fights with them unless we have no choice."

"Speak for yourself!" Dakim laughed. "I'll take 'em all on with my bare hands!"

"Of course you would, you're just a walking muscle." Ferma scoffed. "…Sir." Remembering her rank, she quickly added that last part.

"I will not allow father's ambition to die." Ardos said, calmly walking off. As far as he was concerned, this meeting was done. "Those who stand in my way will be crushed into nothing. Even if it is my own brother."'

"Ow!" Reath suddenly waved her hand. "I think he cut me with his edge!" This caused Ferma, Venus, Trudly, and Folly to snicker.

Gorrigan then started to walk off as well. "This ain't a bad base, despite it being a bit small, but I can take care of that. Production used to be my specialty, so let's see what Shadow Pokémon we got lyin' around. I can do somethin' with 'em."

"Yes yes, leave all the hard, sweaty work to the big boys and the monkeys." Venus fanned herself. "I am going to catch up on my beauty rest, and when I awaken…I will make sure Alola bends its knee to Lady Venus!"

Miror B let out a sigh as everyone began to depart. "Ah, I love this little group of ours. They march to the beat of their own drum, yet don't disrupt the harmony of the grand performance. This is gonna be so much fun~"

.

.

"Lovrina." Grace approached Lovrina with a serious expression.

"Eh?" Lovrina tilted her head. "What'cha need? I don't have any more Cipher info yet, so…"

Grace shook her head. "No, not that…I just. It's about Kasumi. Is she…really dead?"

Ah. Lovrina let out a quiet sigh, arms crossed over her chest. "You were there with us. She…did all she could to save us."

"That's not what I was…" Grace trailed off. "You see…"

Marcus then stepped in. "She's asking if you can confirm if she's dead. When I think back on that day, I couldn't help but wonder…was there a body to be found? Because there's a girl around here in Alola that resembles Kasumi a lot and it has us thinking."

"…!" Lovrina's eyes suddenly widened. "Oh my goodness! How could I be so stupid to miss such a crucial detail!?"

"What's the matter?" Rui asked.

"Kasumi! The ship exploding! We were so caught up in what happened after that I never thought about it." Lovrina started digging through her bag. She was looking for something that wasn't there. "Ugh! It was bothering me a lot and I couldn't explain it. That ship exploded in a bright flash of light, but there was nothing left of it, right?"

"Why are you asking us? You were there!" Elizabeth said. "But…I think so. I thought it all just vaporized. Which kind of scared me since that would mean Kasumi had all that power inside her."

"Even if she did use that shadow core along with her own body…" Lovrina tapped her head. "She didn't have enough power to make something completely vanish like that. At most, the ship would've just bursts into millions of pieces, but there wasn't even a trace of it left."

"Are you saying there's a chance!?" Grace's eyes lit up with hope.

"…Well, I don't know." Lovrina admitted. "I'm not sure how she would've escaped the explosion she committed unharmed, or alive. I don't want to give you false hope, but…"

"Poni Island." Kiawe said, catching some attention. "Tapu Fini can emit a mist that allows you to see people close to your heart who are long gone from the world. If your friend is alive or dead…that's the best way to confirm it."

"But it's not…if you aren't emotionally prepared, it could be difficult to face." Mallow warned, speaking from experience with her mother.

"Seeing the dead…" Moon mumbled.

"I wonder if I could see him one last time…" Rui poked her fingers together.

"I think it's worth a shot. If we can't find that girl soon, it's best to figure out if we have hope or not." Marcus told Grace. There was a strong chance that they could be wrong about this, but they had to know for sure. "And hey, Cipher could be hiding away on Poni too."

"It is worth a shot in checking." Scott added.

"All right!" Ash held a positive smile. "Let's go to Poni Island!"

Grace gave a slow nod. "Mhm. Let's go to Poni Island."

.

.

Next Time: The Mist of Poni Island.


	29. Chapter 29: The Mist of Poni Island

In order to discern the truth about Kasumi's wellbeing, Ash and his friends travelled to Poni Island, where they hoped Tapu Fini's mist would show them the truth. Takeba was the one steering the boat and pulled up to the dock, honking the horn as soon as they hit the dock. "And we've arrived at Poni Island! Thank you for travelling with Vermillion!" Takeba exclaimed with a wink.

Elizabeth stepped out, letting out a heavy exhale. "I know we're in a hurry, but you didn't have to go that fast…"

"I found it exhilarating!" Lana's eyes sparkled. "I didn't know a boat could go that fast! Can you drive that fast on the way back!?"

"You are…insane." Elizabeth pointed at Lana. There was just no other word she could think of.

Marcus glanced around the area, realizing pretty fast that Poni Island was unlike the others he'd been too so far. "Wow, this place is just wilderness, huh?"

"Mostly!" Rotom chimed. "Poni Island is very expansive. Deeper in the Island is Vast Poni Canyon and the Temple of the Sunne."

"…." Moon crossed her arms, rocking her head back and forth. "Temple of the Sunne? I thought it was Temple of the Moone…" And then she remembered that this Alola was different in another aspect. "Oh, I get it."

"So what's our first order of business here?" Grace asked. "Do we just search out this Tapu Fini? Granted we've only seen Tapu Koko a handful of times, is it that easy?"

"It should be!" Ash said with a grin. "First we have to find this Island's Kahuna, Hapu!"

"People live on this island?" Takeba found that hard to believe. But then she saw a Pokémon Center and shrugged her shoulders. "Wow…I guess someone has to."

"Right?" Lovrina placed her hands on her hips. "It's so barren here…"

"It has its own lovely ambiance, though." Rui was taking in the scenery. It reminded her so much of Orre.

"Come on, we should be able to find here around here!" Lillie said with a nod.

"We'll split up, We can cover more ground that way." Mallow said. "And once we do find her, we can gather at the Pokémon Center!"

"I almost feel bad. I want to keep Nurse Joy company." Grace sighed. "But it's okay. Marcus, we'll search over there." Grace pointed and started to drag him off. She needed to find out about Kasumi's wellbeing as soon as possible.

"Ack…! See you guys later…!" Marcus waved as his friend pulled him along.

"We should get looking too." Kiawe told the others, and then glanced at Moon. "…What are you going to do?"

"I think I'll…wait for everyone at the Pokémon Center, if that's okay." Moon rubbed her arm. "I'll just hang out with Pikachu and Kommo-o until you find Hapu."

"If you're sure…" Sophocles frowned.

"Very well." Scott simply nodded. It was best to give Moon the space she wanted until she felt like she could be a part of the group…if that day ever came.

"We'll be back soon." Lillie told Moon.

"Mhm…" Moon gave a slow nod and started towards the Pokémon Center.

Lana's lips curved down. "Poor Moon. I wish we could help her."

"It must be tough wanting to be alone, but not…" Rui let out a sigh. "We'll just have to make this search fast, then."

.

.

Grace had a map of the surrounding area on her phone. She was leading the way, although she wasn't exactly sure _where_ to look. "Hrn…"

"Wandering around lost won't help us find Hapu faster." Marcus said.

"I know that." Grace huffed. "I just wish this place wasn't so vacant! I haven't seen a single person here!"

"Excuse me…"

"It's not so bad if you wanna go exploring. This has a different feel to it than Akala or Melemele. We haven't dropped by Ula'ula yet, though." Marcus shrugged. "Still, at the very least, it shouldn't be too difficult to discern who the Kahuna is since there's a handful of people here."

"Pardon me…"

Grace nodded. "True. I wonder what this Hapu person is like. Since she's a Kahuna, she must be as strong and wise as Olivia and Hala. Makes me wonder what Ula'ula's Kahuna is like too…"

"Seriously…?"

"Did you say something?" Grace asked.

"No…" Marcus shook his head.

"I'm down here!"

Grace and Marcus blinked. When they looked, they saw a short girl that barely went up to their waists standing right behind them. "…What the…?"

Hapu and her Mudsdale were carrying some Poni Radishes. Hapu placed her hands on her hips, staring at the two unfamiliar faces. "I heard you were looking for me? I'm Hapu, the Kahuna of Poni Island! Can I do something for you two?"

Marcus and Grace looked at each other for a second. "_You're _the Kahuna!? How!? You're like…barely up to my waist in height!" Marcus exclaimed. That was a bad move since mentioning Hapu's height was the wrong button to press. Before Marcus knew it, he had been kicked by Mudsdale and was sent flying away in a comical manner. "GAAAAAAAAAH!"

Sweat drop. Grace cleared her throat as Marcus landed somewhere. "Forgive my friend. He has no tact; his significant other is robbing him of what few brain cells he had left. What he _meant _to say is that our friend Ash gave no description of you prior to our arrival, so we didn't know who we were looking for."

"You know Ash?" Hapu's attention was immediately grabbed. Grace was already far more pleasant to talk to than Marcus!

.

.

A few minutes and a chance encounter later, everyone gathered at Poni Island's Pokémon Center. Moon was sitting off alone, playing with her Pikachu and Kommo-o. The others were informing Hapu of the situation in Alola concerning Cipher. "So that's what's going on in Alola? I had no idea. And your new friend…" She took a glance at Moon, who gave a meek wave. It was clear Moon would rather spare herself the embarrassment of an introduction.

"We figured that as one of the big shots in Alola, you should at least know what's going on." Lovrina said. "But given your reaction, I suppose that means you haven't noticed any suspicious activity on Poni Island…"

Hapu shook her head. "Nope. I would've noticed if something was amiss."

"Considering how big and empty this place is…" Marcus trailed off.

"Then it appears as though we can cross Poni Island off the list." Sophocles was keeping track with a special device he created. "This means we will have to thoroughly explore Melemele, Akala, and Ula'Ula if we want to find where Cipher is hiding."

"I don't think you need a special device for that." Scott said. "But you are correct nevertheless. 3 islands instead of 4 will save us time, which is of the essence."

"If you all are in such a rush, why aren't you gone yet?" Hapu asked. "If Cipher is as serious as you claim it to be…."

"That's because we need your help with something!" Ash said. "We were hoping you could ask Tapu Fini to bring out that mist from before. We really need it."

This caught Hapu off guard. "A-Are you sure?" Last time that happened, she was worried her friends would be trapped in that mist.

"Please." Grace said. "I need to know if a friend of mine is truly gone or not. It's important."

It was hard to deny that request. "Very well." Hapu said, starting to leave the Pokémon Center. "I will go ask Tapu Fini. It would be best for you all to wait outside for the mist."

As Hapu left, Mallow went over to Grace. "Hey. Listen…in case you don't get the result you're looking for, I'll be here. I went through something similar with my mother in that same mind, well, it's an emotional experience."

Grace offered a slight smile. "Thank you, Mallow. It means a lot." Grace wasn't sure if she was ready for the truth, but she had to face it.

"Be careful when you go out there." Nurse Joy said. "There have been some Team Skull members on the Island."

"Noted." Marcus said. "Thanks, Nurse Joy!"

.

.

Ash, Marcus, Grace, Elizabeth, Scott, Takeba, Rui, and Lovrina all stood outside the Pokémon Center, near the small forested area near Hapu's House. They were told to wait there by the Kahuna. "I hope this works." Elizabeth said.

"Me too. I hope Kasumi doesn't show up." Takeba was nervously playing with her hair. "Because that would mean she's alive! And the way I feel about that doesn't compare to how Grace feels. Or Marcus."

"If she's alive, then we'll look for her after this is over!" Ash promised. "I'm sure she'll be happy to see us again."

"I feel a little bad for making the others sit out." Grace sighed. "But I'd rather them not see me turn into a bawling mess if we do end up seeing her…" Even though she could rely on Mallow…

"They understand." Ash reassured Grace.

After Ash said that, a pink mist slowly started to roll in. "Yo…here it comes." Marcus said. Things got really tense as the mist quickly enveloped the surrounding area, covering a decent area of Poni Island as a whole. "Anyone else feeling like it's hard to breathe…?"

"That's called anxiety." Lovrina pointed out.

"Someone's coming." Scott pointed ahead. There was a silhouette slowly approaching the group. "…"

"I'm not ready for this!" Takeba yelped and buried her face into Marcus's jacket.

"Hey, I'm not either…!" Marcus grunted.

The silhouette walked closer and closer, their identity slowly being revealed as they stepped into the light. Rui's eyes widened as she was the first person to recognize who it was. Two pokeballs opened on their own from her pockets, revealing Umbreon and Esepeon, who hurried over to the person that appeared before them. "…No way…"

"Oh you gotta be kidding me…" Elizabeth groaned.

It was Wes, the man who aided in Cipher's initial defeat in Orre, and Cipher's former Grand Master. "…Well, this isn't how I was expecting to spend my day. Sup?"

.

.

Back at the Pokémon Center, the others could see the mist beginning to roll in. "The mist is here…" Kiawe mumbled. "I hope they'll get the result they're looking for."

"I don't have any data, so I can't even begin to make an estimate." Rotom said, multiple question marks appearing on its screen.

Moon was looking out the window when she noticed something. Without missing a beat she returned Pikachu and Kommo-o, making her way outside. "Is that…"

"Huh? Moon, where are you going?" Lana noticed that Moon was just going off on her own and decided to follow.

"Wait, Moon! Don't go out there, it's hard to see!" Lillie ended up following Lana. Soon enough, the Alola kids simply began following after Moon, curious as to what had her leave in such a hurry. "Oh, Moon….

"She can be a bit of a handful when she wants to be…" Mallow said with a sweat drop. They followed Moon for a while until she finally stopped at the dock. Standing at the edge before her was an older man, but his face was a bit obscured by the mist.

"Hey, who's that…?" Sophocles asked. He didn't get an answer since no one knew.

"Dad…?" Moon mumbled. That single word caused everyone's eyes to widen.

"Oh, Moon, is that you? I hardly recognized you! You've grown so much!" Moon's father responded with a grin. "You look just like your mother."

"I…" Moon glanced away. She wasn't sure how to handle this.

"Where is your mother? You seem to be a long way away from home." Her father asked with innocent curiosity. It had been such a long time.

"…That's because I'm not home." Moon sighed. "Mom and I moved to Alola since Kanto was full of bad memories of your accident. A lot of things happened and I thought I was getting somewhere, but it turns out I was just as helpless as I was when I was a child. So here I am, far off from home in a place where I don't exist."

"We all fail sometimes, sweet heart." Moon's father took a few steps closer, but still, no one could see his face. "People fail and that's okay. What's important is how you respond to the failure. Because sooner or later, you will hit success. It's just like I always used to say."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I _am _a failure!" Moon suddenly shouted. She had no idea that the others had followed her, so she was screaming out her feelings. "I couldn't protect what I cared about. I may be your daughter, but I'm not like you! I can't save people, I can't protect Pokémon. That's why my home is in danger and there's nothing I can do to save it! Sometimes you can't afford to fail, and that's just been me over and over again!" By this point, the tears were falling. Moon was not a person who cried very often, but her situation was just too much to take.

"…." Moon's words caused Lillie and the others to frown.

"Moon." Her father crouched down, frowning. "Is that how you really feel? Because I know you don't believe that."

Moon turned her head away. "Maybe everything I've done is just my attempt at making up for your accident…since that was my…

"Don't you dare say that. You were young and had no control over what happened!"

"…." Moon's gaze then went down. "And even if I could do something, it wouldn't good enough." She wiped her eyes, forcing a smile. "I'm sorry, Dad. I didn't think our reunion would go this poorly, but it's my fault. I can't…face you right now. I'm not a person you could look in the eye and be proud of." Before any response could be given, Moon turned and ran off, running past the others in the process, now fully aware that they were watching. "Sorry you had to see that…" She muttered as she ran past them.

"…." Lillie held her hands together, watching Moon return to the Pokémon Center.

.

.

"Wes!" Rui went to throw her arms around him, but she ended up stumbling right through him. "O-Oh…"

"Yeaaaah…" Wes rubbed the back of his head. "Not exactly sure what you were expecting there."

"Why is _he _here!?" Elizabeth groaned.

"Well, I did die." Wes shrugged. "Granted, the seat where I am isn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be."

"That doesn't mean you're forgiven for what you've done!" Grace shouted.

"I know." Wes said. His response caught everyone off guard, since they were expecting a snarky response that he usually gave when they were in Kalos. "I was pretty messed up during all that nonsense. Ein really did get the last laugh on me when that tube of Shadow Power exploded on me in the lab."

"Because you pushed me out of the way." Rui remembered that moment all too well. "If I wasn't so blind, I could've seen it sooner and helped you."

"It's all right." Wes waved a hand. "Things are probably better this way. I was a lost cause. More importantly, I'm…sorry for what happened with Kasumi. I put her through a lot."

"Far too much." Marcus glared. "The least you could do is an apology. She went through hell and back trying to keep herself sane and in the end she…"

"Must be around somewhere." Scott pointed out. "I hate to burst this bittersweet reunion of yours. Rui, but we didn't come here to see Wes."

"I know." Rui nodded.

"But Kasumi should've shown up." Lovrina then pointed at Wes. "Okay Bos—er, Wes. Listen. After you kicked the bucket, Ein attempted to take over where you left off. It failed but Kasumi put herself on her the line for it, but she managed to open her heart in the process! Now in the present, Ein's trying to do it again and has the means to do so. Do you see what I'm saying here?"

"Well, I feel a little bad you guys have to clean up my mess…" Wes shrugged. His attitude now was completely different from what he displayed.

"To be fair, this isn't exactly your mess." Takeba pointed out. "Miror B is the root of this. But it's important because they're absolutely going to try and corrupt another person like they did Kasumi. So tell us, is there a way to stop a Shadow Trainer! We couldn't save Kasumi, but…!"

"There are no more Time Flutes." Wes shook his head. "But if Kasumi was able to open her heart as Lovrina said, there is a chance it can be stopped before it begins. But that's not exactly something I took into account at the time. But I'm sure you guys will be fine."

"Hearing you say words of encouragement makes my stomach churn." Elizabeth spat.

"Oh, don't worry…" Wes replied with his usual sarcastic smile. "I don't regret any of the things I said about you."

"YOU!" Elizabeth was about to choke him, but Wes had the advantage since he was just part of the mist. "Damn you!"

Speaking of the mist, it started to clear. "Ah…guess my time's up." Wes said. He then took a look at Ash, giving a nod. "As long as you've got that kid with you, you'll be all right. Sorry for all the trouble. And watch over Rui for me, will you?"

"As long as you've learned." Ash said as Wes started to disappear along with the mist. "We'll take good care of Rui! We promise."

"Thanks. Good luck." Wes winked towards Rui before the mist completely faded.

"Bye, Wes…" Rui placed her hand on her chest, smiling as Wes started to vanish. Even as his form lingered, he wasn't able to speak anymore.

"So you've chosen to forgive him?" Scott asked.

"It's not easy after all he's done…a lot of people got hurt, but it looks like he was sorry." Ash responded and Pikachu nodded.

"We didn't see Kasumi, though." Takeba smiled. "So that means she's still alive!"

"That's one step closer to finding her." Grace let out a huge sigh of relief. "I wasn't sure I could take it otherwise. Now I know for certain…"

Hapu arrived on her Mudsdale, looking over everyone. "So I take it that it went well?"

"Yeah. Thank you, Hapu." Grace nodded. "Thank you so much."

"Ugh, that mist was somethin' else…" That voice belonged to Plumeria. She and K wandered out of a few bushes, highly annoyed at what just happened.

"Honestly! Couldn't see a dang thing." K rubbed her head. That's when they both noticed Ash and company nearby. "Ack, seriously!?"

"What are you doing here?" Hapu narrowed her eyes, assuming that the members of Team Skull were up to no good as usual.

"Nothing that concerns ya." Plumeria immediately replied, brushing off the Kahuna. "C'mon, let's get outta here. That mist ruined our chances of taking those Oracorios."

"Totally…" K sighed and followed alongside Plumeria.

"Kasumi!" Grace shouted suddenly.

K froze, whipping around to face Grace instinctively. "What?" As soon as she responded, she was surprised at how instinctual that was. "What…? Why did I respond to that?"

"No way!" Elizabeth's jaw dropped. "That must be…"

"Kasumi…" K closed her eyes and her head started hurting. "Kasumi…Kasumi…Kasumi…is that…my name…?"

"That's gotta be her!" Ash shouted.

"Pika!" Pikachu gave a nod of agreement. There was no way it could mistake this scent.

"I…" K shook her head. "Kasumi…"

The sound of propeller blades cut this moment short. When everyone looked up, they saw Ein manning a helicopter with Venus hanging outside the front door. "Ah! So that's where you little brats were this whole time!"

"Venus!" Grace, Takeba, and Elizabeth all shouted at once.

"Ein!" Marcus, Scott, and Ash exclaimed.

"It's been suuuuuuch a long time since we've last seen each other! I just couldn't bear waiting another second before seeing despair written on your face!" Venus laughed. "Ohohohoho!"

"Venus…?" K looked up and her eyes widened. Almost like she was on the cusp of remembering something.

"Who the…" Plumeria looked up at the helicopter with annoyance.

"That must be Cipher!" Hapu glared at the helicopter.

"This is a formal declaration." Ein said through a speaker. "You have 48 hours to find us. Otherwise our assault on Alola will begin."

"48 hours!? Is this some sort of game to you?!" Takeba clenched a hand into a fist. "Showing yourself like this!" She was prepared to reach for a Pokeball, but Venus' voice stopped her.

"Ah ah! We didn't come here fight. Just to warn you." Under Venus' veil was her maliciously sweet smile. "We've almost completed preparations for our Shadow Pokémon Project revival. We're only telling you this to throw you a bone. You've been so hard at work looking for us, I felt a little bad. I want the satisfaction of crushing you. But you can only do that if you find us~"

"You'll regret showing yourselves to us." Lovrina snickered. "You know this is how a plan fails, right?"

"Oh, it's no fun if things go flawlessly! I want to see you struggle when you fail to stop us this time, Lovrina dear! I want to smear Alola's blue oceans red with your bodies." Venus' gaze turned much more violent. She did not take kindly to losing once, let alone twice.

"Bring it on you gaudy freak!" Marcus shouted. "Dragonite, let's do this!" Marcus called out Dragonite, who let out a mighty roar.

"….!" K's eyes widened. But she didn't have the chance to say anything since Plumeria thought it wise to leave before things ended up escalating, so she was dragged along.

"Sorry, but this is all the time we can afford to spend with you. But don't worry; we'll be keeping you very busy these next two days. No matter what you do…you'll be walking right into the palm of our hands. Oh, but don't worry, Grandmaster Wes!" Ein was speaking to the fading Wes who couldn't do anything but just glare up at Ein. The mist had all but cleared and Ein was relishing in this moment; a moment that completed his revenge against Wes since he was humiliated by him on numerous occasions. "We're taking good care of your project!It's a shame you won't get to see it at its full potential! But you were a fantastic fall man." With that, Ein's Alakazam used Teleport, causing the helicopter to vanish.

"Damn him…" Grace snarled.

"48 hours." Scott lifted his index finger up. "It's a trap. Unfortunately, we have to walk into it and seek them out."

"Hey, where'd the hot girl go?" Elizabeth was looking around for Plumeria, but she and K were long gone.

Ash grabbed the tip of his hat, glaring off into the distance. If Ein thought that Cipher was going to win, they certainly had another thing coming. "Alola's not gonna lose to you."

.

.

Next Time: Reconnaissance.


	30. Chapter 30: Reconnaissance

Cipher left Ash and his friends with a strict time limit. 48 hours to find and stop them. The pressure was on to stop Cipher before they enacted whatever they had planned on Alola, and the Ultra Guardians absolutely could not let that happen! The first 12 hours were spent combing the rest of Akala Island. Akala and Ula'Ula were the only two islands they deduced Cipher could be hiding, as Hapu swore there was no activity on Poni Island, and they had been all over Melemele at this point. The gang searched all over Akala, specifically near Diglett's Cave, Wela Volcano Park, and Brooklet Hill. Unfortunately, there was nothing…meaning that Ula'Ula was the only place left. After a long day of searching, Ash returned home, tired from searching Akala all day. "Ah…hey, I'm back."

Moon leaned over the railing of the second floor, waving at Ash as he and Pikachu returned. "Hey, welcome back. How'd it go?" It was clear that Moon was the only one who didn't participate in the search for Cipher. She felt like she wouldn't be much help and no one wanted to fault her for that.

"We couldn't find anything…" Ash let out a sigh. The situation admittedly had him a little stressed. They couldn't afford to let Cipher win. "We know that Akala Island isn't where they're hiding, so that just leaves Ula'Ula. I hope we can find something there. We can't let Cipher win, not after what they did before."

"Pika!" Ash's Pikachu nodded in agreement.

"_He's so dedicated in protecting Alola…"_ Moon thought to herself. She then shook her head and slid down the ladder, preparing the food for everyone's Pokémon. For Melmetal, she once again had to drag a large metal beam, but luckily Kommo-o was willing to do this for her so the metal behemoth didn't eat their utilities.

Burnet had just finished making dinner for everyone when Ash came in. "You'll be all right, Ash. You guys have faced off against Ultra Beasts and come out on top. You still have all day after tonight, so take it easy, okay?"

"She's right." Kukui said with a smile. "Take a quick Rest, and then spring back into action tomorrow with a fierce Quick Attack!"

Moon placed her hands behind her back, smiling towards Ash. "Yeah. It won't do you any good to overwork yourself. You guys can do it. I'll hold down the fort here, okay? So you don't have to worry."

Ash couldn't help but grin at their words. It was the encouragement he needed and it showed. "Thanks, guys. We'll get them tomorrow!"

Just outside of Kukui's home, Folly was peering into the house from afar with a pair of binoculars. He couldn't see inside, but he did see Ash walk in and considering how late it was, that only drew one conclusion. "Looks like the boss was right to tell me to tail 'em! So this is where he lives, huh? Ein's gonna love this…!"

.

.

8 AM; 24 hours left on the clock. Everything led to Ula'Ula Island. The group had split up to cover more ground and investigate several areas of the largest island in Alola. Elizabeth, Takeba, Scott Lana, and Mallow were wandering around Malie City when they were caught by Mina, who demanded they hold still for her painting. "Right there…stay still…" Mina closed one eye, attempting to get the angle just right.

"Do we have time for this…?" Scott looked to the others.

"Not really." Takeba sighed. "But something about her gaze made me afraid to say no…"

"Mina's harmless! A little out there, but harmless." Mallow said with a sweet smile. The Shaymin in her arms agreed.

"A little?" Elizabeth blinked. She recalled encountering Mina when she arrived in Alola.

"We can ask her some questions, too!" Lana pointed out. "Maybe she's seen something? We need all the information we can get if we want to find Cipher. They have to be on this Island!"

"Right!" Takeba then turned to Mina. "Hey, so…have you seen anything suspicious around here lately? Like, any weird people who you haven't seen before, etc…"

"Hmmmmm….." Mina tilted her head for a moment. "Nope."

There was a brief pause. Scott cleared his throat before asking another question. "Pardon my asking, but do you know what the word suspicious means?"

"Totally!" Mina gave a smile. "Like, when people are doing sketchy things. Oh, but like, not like the sketching that I'm doing. But sketchy things that are sketchy, you know?"

There was a pause as everyone looked at each other. "…Did you get that?" Elizabeth asked.

"If my life hinged on translating what she just told us, I'd be a dead man." Scott sighed.

Jessie, James, and Meowth were nearby, disguised while sitting at a nearby restaurant. "Based on the twerps being here, Cipher's gotta be here on this island, right?" Meowth asked.

"That appears to be the case." James said quietly, pretending to read a newspaper. "I wonder where they could be hiding. This island is huge."

"That's the twerp's jobs to figure out!" Jessie grinned. "They can find Cipher for us and we'll sneak in once both sides are exhausted from fighting, and then steal all their Pokémon!"

"A wonderful idea!" James and Meowth exclaimed in unison.

.

.

A very unfortunate Officer Nanu was being questioned by Ash, Grace, and Marcus. If it weren't for Ash, Nanu could have gotten away with pretending to be a lazy officer, but with his identity as the Kahuna revealed, he had no choice but to comply. With his legs propped up on his desk, the tired Kahuna stared at Grace. "You wanna go to Po Town…?"

"Yes, it's very important." Grace said with a few nods. "We tried to go ourselves but we were not expecting a large gate overhead!"

"Well, yeah…Team Skull doesn't wanna let people in, and I really don't feel like using the key…so it's a mutual understanding." Nanu said.

"Uncle…" Acerola let out a sigh at Nanu's difficulty. "Even after hearing their story, you won't let them in?"

"I didn't say that." Nanu responded. "I just said _I _don't feel like letting them in. If they wanna go get mauled by Team Skull, that's on them."

Marcus rolled his eyes. "Ash, you sure this guy's a Kahuna?"

"Yup!" Ash grinned. "He's just…"

"Lazy? Difficult? The worst qualities a lazy person should have?" Grace crossed her arms. Nanu didn't seem to take any offense.

"All those words apply-roto!" Rotom said.

"I'll be truthful with you. I haven't seen anything odd in these parts." Nanu admitted. "If I had, I would've let you know. I may not enjoy having any type of company, but I take my job seriously when I need to." It was then Nanu tossed Ash a gate key. "If you wanna go to Po Town, be my guest. Don't say I didn't try and warn ya, though."

"Not exactly sure how I feel about that coming from a cop and all…" Marcus sighed. "But let's go."

"Thanks, Nanu!" Ash said, leaving his station with Grace and Marcus following behind him.

As they left Nanu sighed, opening a magazine to return to his crossword puzzle. "What an annoyance…"

Acerola left as well, bouncing with each step. "I'm gonna help them look around. Maybe those Cipher people are lurking in the abandoned supermarket. They could be." She wanted to do whatever she could to help. So, with that said, the girl left to aid in any way she could!

.

.

Lovrina and Rui were doing an overall sweep of Ula'Ula Island. Lovrina was riding upon a borrowed Braviary with Rui, glancing around the large island from above. "I can't believe any of this. It's pretty insane." Rui sighed.

"You're telling me." Lovrina shook her head, staring down at the ground for any clues. "I feel like this is karma biting me in the butt for what I did before. I really don't want Alola to suffer like I made Kalos did…"

Rui frowned at Lovrina's words. It was clear that she still had some regrets on what happened. "Lovrina…it's okay."

"No, it's not. Cipher is bad news. I thought we were past this, but still…" The pink haired woman shook her head. "I guess there's no point complaining about it now. We have to stop them before it's too late. I wonder if Ash and the others managed to find Nanu yet…or if they were able to get him to cooperate."

"He's the lazy one, right?" Rui asked.

"Yup." Lovrina nodded. "I haven't met the guy myself, but Looker says he's good at what he does. I'll take his word for it. Anyway, you see anything yet?"

"Honestly, I'm not so sure what we should be looking for…" Rui admitted. "We saw their helicopter, but we don't know anything else. Are we going to run out of time?"

"No way. I won't let that happen." Lovrina shook her head. "We'll find them before the day is over, one way or another! I swear on my makeup collection!"

"Oh, wow…" No one else would have realized how serious this was, but Rui knew that Lovrina was dead set on this.

.

.

Sophocles, Kiawe, and Lillie went to Hokulani Observatory to speak with Molyane. They told Molyane the story about Cipher and he seemed to be pretty curious. "This all seems pretty serious. I didn't realize such things were happening in Alola…"

"That's why we were wondering if you had seen anything from the observatory lately!" Sophocles asked his cousin. "We've looked all around the other islands and Ula'Ula is the only place that's left!"

"Please, if you know anything, we need to know!" Lillie pleaded.

"Hmm…" Molyane closed his eyes for a moment, thinking on anything he had seen in the past few days. "Thinking about it now, I _did _notice something strange the other day."

"You gotta tell us!" Kiawe said.

"I was looking out over the island from inside…" Molyane said. "When I happened to turn my gaze to Mt. Lanikila. Then, out of the blue, a helicopter appeared from thin air! It was so surprising, it caught me off guard! I kept looking curiously and it circled the mountain. I wasn't able to see where it landed, but I know that it didn't leave the mountain after that. I would've passed it off as normal had I not seen it pop in out of nowhere. It was very brief, but I saw a young woman and a man with a very unique hairstyle in the helicopter. I haven't seen either of them before."

Lillie gasped. "The others said that a Cipher's helicopter teleported away the other day too! I don't think this can be passed off as a coincidence!"

Kiawe dug in his pocket, pulling out pictures of Ein and Venus. "Did they look anything like this?"

Molyane nodded immediately. "Yes, that's it! That's what they looked like! And like I said, I know they haven't left the mountain. Out of curiosity, I started keeping tabs on it and no one's reported anything strange."

"We got them…" Kiawe let out a sigh of relief.

"You've been a real big help, Molyane!" Sophocles grinned. "We have to tell the others!"

.

.

Po Town was even drearier than they could have imagined. Ash, Marcus, Grace, and Rotom all rushed inside the largest building to get away from the rain that plagued the town. "Geez!" Marcus shook his head. "He could've warned us that it was a perpetual rainfall here!"

"No kidding!" Grace was wringing the water out of her hair. "I wasn't dressed for rainy weather."

"I don't think any of us were…" Ash sighed.

"But at least we got out of the rain-roto!" Rotom said. "Still, I did not think Team Skull's base of operations would be so…run down." And there it went, snapping pictures of the run down mansion.

Needless to say they were uninvited guests, approached by Plumeria, who had her hands on her hips. "Who let you in here? We have a guard at the front gate."

"Yeah, he got destroyed." Grace said, taking full credit for that. "And we're very sorry to barge in unannounced, but uh…first off, we didn't exactly know how to tell you we were coming, and second, the officer who helped us was barely any help."

"This is Team Skull's home, so what do you want?" Plumeria lifted a brow. Her tone made it clear that she would have them jumped by the lurking members of Team Skull for any wrong reason.

"We came for two reasons." Ash said. "First, we wanted to see Kasumi!"

"You mean K?" Plumeria stared at the group. "Yeah, ever since you called her that name, she's been holed up in her room. She's not in the mood for visitors, so I'm gonna have to deny you that request."

"Seriously?" Grace frowned. "It's important! I need to see her!"

"What part of no don't you understand?" Plumeria leaned forward, giving Grace an antagonizing stare. She wasn't referred to as the 'big sister' of Team Skull without reason; she wasn't going to allow Grace to further bother K.

"I don't think she's going to let us pass…" Marcus told the others.

"There's a 0% chance she will." Rotom added.

"Move onto your second reason and get outta here." Plumeria demanded. She wasn't in the mood to entertain these guests.

"Is it about that Cipher I've been hearin' about?" That voice came from Guzma, who stood on the second floor, watching the commotion below.

"WHOA! Thug alert!" Marcus pointed at Guzma.

That just made Guzma chuckle. "Plumeria told me all about that encounter on Poni Island the other day. Did ya think we were in the dark or something?"

"Who the heck is this guy?" Grace asked.

"Guzma. The leader of Team Skull." Ash responded. "We're here to see Kasumi because she's tied to the Cipher incident!"

"That a fact?" Guzma lifted a brow. "You came all this way to our home to see one person? I gotta say…you're pretty stupid, Alola Champ." He was being antagonistic on purpose. There was lightning blazing between the gazes of Ash and Guzma as he smirked, and Ash held a slight glare. "If you think we're scared of those weirdoes or anything, think again. Team Skull can handle it."

"They're a danger to Alola! So we were wondering if…" Ash trailed off. It was a long shot and he knew it…

"You want our help? Forget it!" Guzma laughed. "The only thing I'm interested in protecting is Team Skull. These idiots won't let me disband, so the least I can do is make sure they're tough enough to hold their own."

A door from a hallway cracked open. K was peering into the main hall, watching the conversation go down. She heard her name from all the yelling and got curious. "…."

"You should've expected as much from a bunch of thugs." Grace spat. "We only asked since you're a capable force in Alola, the extra numbers would've been nice."

"You wasted your breath." Plumeria said.

"I see that now." Grace shook her head. "Regardless, at least you know about Cipher, so I don't have to tell you how dangerous they are. But if Kasumi gets hurt because of your inactions, I will be back here to make sure you pay." The brunette then turned on her heel and started to walk out the mansion.

"Grace…" Marcus sighed. "Well, thug city has been nice, but they clearly don't want us here anymore. Let's go, Ash. We managed to pass on the message at least."

"Yeah…good luck." Ash nodded and left with Marcus and the others.

"Hah…" Guzma let out a faint chuckle. "I'm not interested in what some big-shot organization thinks they can achieve. As long as they don't mess with us, they can do whatever they want."

"…." K remained silent, quietly closing the door to return to her room. "My name is Kasumi…"

.

.

"So…" Elizabeth began, inching her way towards Mina. Since they weren't really getting many answers out of her, she decided to go for her own approach. "Are you seeing anyone?"

"Seriously? Right now?" Takeba pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Uh…" Mina tapped her chin with her brush. "I'm seeing you guys right now."

"…." Silence from all parties.

"I think she's a little too far out there to understand subtlety…" Scott said.

"I don't think she even knows what that is." Takeba pointed out.

"Okay." Elizabeth took a deep breath. "Would you like to go out sometime?"

"But we're already outside." Mina replied.

"..." Elizabeth had nothing to say. What could she say to that?

"…..Pfffftttt….ahahahahaha!" Takeba started laughing.

"….Pft…." Even Scott, the straight man, was barely capable of withholding his laughter.

"O-Okay, we should really get going." Lana said with a sweat drop. "We have to keep looking, you know?"

"Y-Yeah!" Mallow nodded. "It's for the best we get moving. It was nice seeing you again, Mina!"

"Yuuuup!" Mina waved. "Oh, wait, before you go…" She then pointed behind the group. "Do you know those guys? They've been staring over here for quite a while. Like, since you guys got here. I thought you might've known each other." Just behind the group, hiding behind a tree, were Trudly and Folly. Now that they had been noticed, they were sweating profusely.

The others turned around, eyes widening as they met with the goons of Miror B. There was silence before Lana pointed at them. "THERE THEY ARE!"

"GET THEM!" Mallow yelled right after.

"GAAAAH! WE'VE BEEN SPOTTED!" Trudly yelled and he started to sprint away with Folly.

"BACK TO BASE! BACK TO BASE!" Folly screamed.

"I'M NOT READY TO GO BACK TO THAT COLD MOUNTAIN MAN!" Trudly whined.

Just before the chase could ensue, Scott stopped everyone from pursuing. "Wait. There's no need."

"But they're right there!" Elizabeth pointed. "Well…not anymore, but still…!"

"Did you hear what they said?" Scott asked.

"Something about a cold mountain?" Takeba tilted her head.

"WHAT." Elizabeth's eyes widened. "You're telling me this tropical oven has a COLD MOUNTAIN AND NO ONE TOLD ME ABOUT IT!?"

"Ooooooooh. Mt. Lanikila!" Mina chimed in. "So thaaaaat's where they're going. Wicked."

"Mt….Lanikila?!" Lana and Mallow looked at each other. The only place they didn't think to check!

"Mt. Lanikila's like…really cold. So you should bundle up if you're going." Mina continued to say, unaware that the group had gotten the point already. All they could do is stare at the artist as she waved them off with that absentminded smile of hers.

"…I know she means well, but it's just so funny." Takeba couldn't help but snicker. Still, this was just to ease the growing tension in the air. Whether it was by luck, chance, or intentional, they now knew Cipher's hideout. This meant that the battle against them was rapidly approaching and now they had to prepare...

.

.

Next Time: Mt. Lanikila.


	31. Chapter 31: Mt Lanakila

6AM, early morning. There were 2 hours left on the clock until Ciper enacted whatever plan they had upon Alola. After finding out that their hideout was within Mt. Lanakila, Ash and his friends rested for a majority of the day before waking up early! They were all gathering at the Pokémon School, most of them understandably sleepy. Elizabeth rubbed her eyes, yawning as the building came into view. "Why are we up so early…"

"So we can stop Cipher at the last second." Scott said. Unlike the others he seemed oddly awake at this hour. "It would have been a waste of energy to tail Folly and Trudly yesterday. We needed to prepare and I can assure you that none of us were ready for scaling Mt. Lanakila."

"But why are we near a school!?" Takeba gasped, catching everyone's attention.

"Don't tell me you flunked out of school…" Grace looked at Takeba.

"…I don't want to answer that." Takeba cleared her throat.

"We're here because our secret base is under the school!" Lillie said, lifting a finger up. "You're all a part of the Ultra Guardians now."

"That's right!" Lana said with a tired smile. "So we have to bring you to our base of operations."

Sophocles looked around before turning to Ash. "Is Moon not coming?"

"Nah." Ash shook his head. "I told her last night what we were going to do, so she knows what's going on, but she said she wasn't sure she'd be of much help. So she's going to stay with Burnet." He explained.

"She was fast asleep when we left-roto!" Rotom said.

"So it's up to us then." Mallow said. "I don't blame her."

"So what's this base you're talking about?" Lovrina blinked as they walked into the school. All they could do was follow Ash and his Alola friends. When they rounded the corner into the class room, Kukui was already there waiting.

"Yo! Everyone get a nice taste of the Morning Sun?" Kukui said with a smile.

"It's still a little too early for my taste…" Marcus yawned. "But why are you here…?"

"To wish the Ultra Guardians good luck and see them off!" Kukui said, placing his hand on the blackboard. This caused the nearby bookcase in the corner of the room to turn around, revealing that it was an elevator!

"What." Elizabeth rubbed her eyes, unsure if she was hallucinating or not. It was early after all.

"Am I…still sleeping?" Rui blinked a few times, sleepily walking towards elevator…more so trudging her feet.

"Come on, we don't have much time to loss!" Ash was leading into the way into the elevator. It was a bit of a tight squeeze since there were so many people in the elevator.

"Good luck, Ultra Guardians!" Kukui said as he pressed the secret button once again, sending the Ultra Guardians down to the secret basement under the school!

.

.

"It's a bit of a tight squeeze…" Elizabeth felt a little crowded.

"There are usually only six of us when we come down here…" Mallow scratched her cheek.

"But with a force like this, we won't be beat!" Kiawe shouted. At that moment, everyone began to suit up automatically! Ash and his friends were wrapped in their Ultra Guardian outfits! Now it was time for Marcus and the others to get a taste too, as the outfits were specially tailored to fit them.

"Whoa, whoa, what's happening!?" Marcus looked around as his body began to shine brightly! He was wrapped in a dark blue Ultra Guardian outfit, identical to everyone else's!

"Ahhh! It's so tacky!" The shock of it all woke Takeba right up. As she requested earlier, her uniform was a bright pink and it kind of clung to her, due to her figure. Still it was a perfect fit! Grace was given a dark purple uniform; Scott's colors were green and black, while Elizabeth had red and black! They were official members of the Ultra Guardians with this!

"Huh…" Grace stared at her new outfit. "You know, I actually kind of like this. It's really comfortable!"

"Me too…" Elizabeth admitted.

"Not too shabby…" Scott shrugged.

"…Uh." Rui and Lovrina looked at each other. They were never apart of the initial conversation a while ago, so they didn't get outfits, and they weren't so sure they wanted any either. The elevator came to a halt and everyone could finally stand out into the high tech base of the Ultra Guardians, where Clefable awaited them.

"This is your base!?" Marcus looked around. "Under a school no less…"

"Mother was very helpful in this endeavor." Lillie nodded.

Speaking of her mother, Lusamine appeared on the screen in the center of the room. Her hair was a bit frazzled since she had just woken up. "Good morning, Ultra Guardians. Time is of the essence and I've come with good news. After taking the information you've told us, we've done a scan of Mt. Lanakila." An aerial map of said mountain appeared on the screen, a red arrow pointing towards Cipher's predicted location. "We've located a building on the far side of the mountain, several kilometers up the base."

"That building looks huge!" Lana gasped. "There's no way we can miss that."

"But we have to be careful. Who knows what sort of schemes they've plotted. They know the area a little better than we do." Lovrina pointed out.

"They also have Shadow Pokémon at their disposal." Rui added. "So we're going to be in for a tough fight no matter what we do."

"That's okay. We can take them down!" Ash said confidently. "What else do we need to know, Lusamine."

"Well…" Lusamine began. "That particular side of the mountain is very sensitive when it comes to avalanches. Too much of a disturbance could cause the mountain to come falling down on that building."

"That would be awful…" Lillie frowned. "If an avalanche occurred, a lot of people and Pokémon could get hurt…"

"But we can't leave them be." Kiawe furrowed his brows. "Did Cipher pick that spot intentionally, knowing it could put us in a bad spot?"

"Regardless, we can't let that stop us." Grace told everyone. "We'll have to burn that bridge if we get to it. We have bigger things to worry about."

"She's right." Rui nodded.

As they spoke, Clefairy handed Mallow a toolbox. This toolbox contained handy items like potions and berries; they were going to need it.

"That's all you need to know about Cipher's whereabouts. Gladion will be joining you shortly as well. The rest is up to you, Ultra Guardians! Alola is depending on you to stop Cipher!" Lusamine stood up from her chair, extending her arm forward to send the Guardians off.

"Roger, Lusamine!" Everyone said before heading to the area where the Ride Pokémon were. Everyone geared up, though Scott had to share riding Dragonite with Marcus, while Rui and Lovrina once again had to use the Braviary from before.

"It's time to move out! Let's go, Ultra Guardians!" Ash took the lead, the runway opening up from under the fountain in the courtyard, allowing Garchomp to glide off into the sky, everyone else following right after! Their destination: Mt. Lanakila!

.

.

"They only have 2 hours left." Ein tapped his foot on the ground. "Are you certain they took the bait?" He turned to Trudly and Folly.

"We were as dumb as we could be!" Folly said.

"So business as usual." Ferma snickered.

"Uh…" Reath gestured for everyone to look at their screen. "We've got visitors coming in hot!" A closer look revealed that it was the Ultra Guardians on their way!

Venus took one look at their outfits and nearly gagged. "Ugh, what are they wearing? It's horrendous…! It makes me sick just looking at it."

"It doesn't matter what they're wearing! I'll crush 'em all the same!" Dakim laughed.

Miror B had a sinister glint in his eyes. "Well well, it looks like everything's all going according to plan. We'll round up those brats and put an end to their song!"

"Just as predicted." Ardos folded his arms together. "The Shadow Pokémon are prepared for battle, Ein."

"Excellent." Ein's glasses gave off a malicious glint of light. He then turned to Folly. "Folly. You know what to do now, don't you?"

"Of course!" Folly gave a salute. "Now that the kid's house is empty, I go kidnap the Professor's wife, right? Even if that Professor himself it pretty strong, it won't matter if his lady is in danger!"

"And once we have that hostage, they won't have any choice but to back down!" Trudly grinned. "We're pretty good at kidnappin' chicks."

"You have to be, because no woman would willingly approach you." Venus flipped her hair. That comment of hers stung the two men hard.

"I-I'm gonna go now…" With his head hung low after Venus' confidence, Folly left with his dignity. He had a job to do, a job that could put their foes in a tight spot if he pulled it off correctly.

"Then it's time we all get to our positions." Nascour said, walking off immediately after. "We don't have time to waste and I want to ensure our guests receive a warm welcome."

"Haha…This is gonna be fun!" Gorrigan was bouncing in place from excitement. Not like a small child, but like a Primeape that was ready for the fight of its life.

.

.

The Ultra Guardians landed a few kilometers up the base of Mt. Lanakila. They were prepared to climb the rest of the way, since the location they had been given was in an area inaccessible via flying. As soon as they touched the ground, Elizabeth collapsed on the snow and everyone turned worriedly. "Are you okay?!" Mallow asked, worried.

"SNOW!" Elizabeth was practically doing snow angels. "It's been so long since I've seen snow! I'm home! I'm home!" Dead silence. "What!? Don't give me those looks! I need this!"

"She's not even cold…" Sophocles was amazed. Their uniforms were made to retain body heat in these conditions, but if they played in snow like Elizabeth did, they'd be shivering!

"She's a Sinnoh native. They're like this." Lovrina said. "She's also embarrassing Sinnoh by acting like this. We have a job to do!"

"…Sorry." Elizabeth stood up, enjoying her brief time in the snow. "How annoying that we can't fly up the rest of the way."

"The winds are too dangerous and there's nowhere to safely land the Ride Pokémon." Kiawe said. "We can't leave them in this freezing cold either."

"I guess that's why they flew off, minus your Charizard." Takeba shrugged her shoulders. "Anyway, we don't have time to be losing!"

"Yeah, we have to go!" Ash agreed.

Rotom them started doing some calculations: "Our flight took about 20 minutes! Combined with our arrival and debriefing, we have 90 minutes left before Cipher acts-roto!"

"We don't even know what they're gonna do." Lana shook her head. "But it's for the best we stop it, no matter what!"

"Hold it." Scott stopped in his tracks, glancing around the snowy surroundings. "Someone's coming."

"Already!?" Lillie looked around, Snowy prepared to fight. A few minutes of tense silence passed until numerous rocks rained down upon them! They were akin to beams of energy and everyone immediately braced themselves as snow erupted all around them. "Ah!"

"Power Gem!" Marcus exclaimed.

Reath walked forward with her Ampharos beside her, a small device in her hand and a smug grin on her face. "Wow, you guys have terrible fashion sense. Welcome to Mt. Lanakila! I'm surprised it took you this long to find us~"

"What are you planning!?" Grace demanded to know.

"Do you _really _wanna know?" Reath twirled around the device in her hands. "Well, I suppose I can let you in. Miror B told me to tell you guys. Mt. Lanakila is a pretty tall mountain, wouldn't you say? It would be a real shame if something were to happen to it."

Everyone's eyes widened as these words. "You wouldn't…" Lana began.

"Oh, but we would! As soon as we're done dealing with you, we're going to blow this mountain up!" Reath grinned. "It'll probably cause a lot of damage…"

"You can't blow up this mountain! There are people and Pokémon here!" Lillie exclaimed.

"That sounds like a you problem." Reath shrugged her shoulders dismissively. "If you don't like it so much, why don't you try and stop us? Although I only have one detonator, which will explode the base of the mountain. The others have more on them, so even if you stop me, you still have them to worry about. They can blow up whatever part of the mountain they please."

"That's fine. We'll stop you all!" Rui said firmly.

"Okay, then I invite all of you to gang up on me!" Reath held her arms out.

"We don't have time for that." Takeba stepped forward, placing a hand on her Z-ring. "You guys go ahead! I'll catch up later after I beat this one!"

"Takeba?" Marcus looked back over his shoulder.

"Trust me, I got this." Takeba gave Marcus a wink. "I won't slow you down again, I promise."

"You heard the lady. Let's go." Marcus nodded and everyone followed suit up the mountain.

Reath waved off the Ultra Guardians as they went in the direction of the base before turning back to Takeba, who was reaching for a Pokeball. "Ah, so you must be Takeba Vermillion! I never thought I'd have the chance to meet such a rich lady face to face. Maybe after I beat you, I'll see what I can reap from your wallet. It's probably stacked."

"And after I beat you, I'll catch up with the others!" Takeba said while throwing out a Pokeball, calling Honchkrow out into the battle. "Or you could just make this easy and turn yourself in, its your choice!"

"Hah…" Reath's lips curled up into an evil smile. "Well, when you lose…" She then lifted up the detonator in her hands. "I'll press this button and blow up the base of Mt. Lanakila. Think you can handle that kind of pressure on your shoulders, Ms. Heiress?"

Takeba forced herself to smirk, pointing forward dramatically. "If you think I'm going to stand here and let you destroy a part of Alola, then you've got another thing coming! I'll show you the power this island has granted me!"

.

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Next Time: Neo-Cipher's Assault!


	32. Chapter 32: Neo-Cipher's Assault

The battle against Neo-Cipher had finally begun. Their plan was to blow up Mt. Lanakila within a 90 minute time frame! The Ultra Guardians were in a race against the clock to defeat Cipher once and for all and put an end to their asinine plans! While the others went on ahead to the base, Takeba stayed behind to deal with Reath and her Ampharos. As it stood at the moment, Honchkrow was currently circling around the air, avoiding Ampharos' Discharge since it couldn't get in close without being in danger. "I have to wonder…" Reath began, tapping her chin with her index finger. "How dumb can you be? Using a flying type with an electric type is out on the field! At least try to make things even!"

Little did Reath know the Pokémon Takeba brought to Alola in general weren't very good against electric types! "Hah! Jokes on you! My team sucks against Electric types!" …And now Reath knew that. Takeba blinked and let out a heavy sigh. "Um…can you forget you heard that?"

"Not a chance, sweetie." Reath snapped her fingers. "Ampharos, use Power Gem!" Ampharos swung its tail forward, releasing a bombardment of silver rocks that shot into the skies, all aiming to take Honchkrow down. Honchkrow was able to avoid a majority of these rocks with its quick movements, but one struck its wing, causing an explosion and made Honchkrow tumble down towards the ground. "Gotcha~"

"Honchkrow! Use Mirror Move!" Honchkrow was spiraling out of control for a few seconds but it was able to regain control. As soon as it did it flapped its wings, turning Mirror Move into Power Gem! Feathers mimicked the properties of Power Gem, slamming into the ground around Ampharos to kick up an abundance of snow in front of it.

"Hey, what the heck!?" Reath narrowed her eyes.

"Now, Drill Peck!" Honchkrow used this chance to spin around, taking the shape of a drill as it burst through the snow veil it created, slamming into Ampharos' chest with enough force to nearly knock it over! "Got'cha!"

"Don't think so! Thunder Punch!" Before Honchkrow could fly past Ampharos, the electric type's tail gave off a strong discharge of lightning and it slammed right into Honchkrow's chest, knocking the bird down to the ground a few feet away.

"What!?" Takeba's eyes widened. "That's not fair! How do you punch with your tail?!"

"I thought you were a little better than this! Dragon Pulse!" After Reath taunted Takeba, Ampharos exhaled, releasing a multicolored blast that resembled a wyvern! The blast shot through the air, splitting apart the snow as it intended to explode against Honchkrow!

"Mirror Move!" Honchkrow recovered in time, opening its beak to make use of Dragon Pulse via Mirror Move! The two attacks collided and exploded against one another, creating a thick cloud of smoke that obscured the sight of all parties. "Now, use Psychic!" Honchkrow's eyes lit up as it took a telekinetic grasp of Ampharos, releasing a powerful shockwave in its direction while it was helpless!

"Magnetic Flux." Reath commanded. Ampharos' eyes lit up as it released another discharge of electricity, but it was non-damaging. The air was electrified and they could feel it. Just as Psychic hit, Ampharos didn't budge as it was freed from the telekinetic grasp.

"Huh!?" Takeba's eyes widened. "That didn't do any damage?!"

"Magnetic Flux raises the defenses of Pokémon with the ability Plus or Minus. My dear little Ampharos has Plus as its ability! That means you won't be hurting it with what you have to offer!" Reath explained. "Ah! But don't you have a Mega Blastoise? Surely that could be a clash, I'm pretty curious."

"Eh…" Takeba started to sweat. Now she was really regretting leaving her Keystone back in Kanto. But she also felt her stomach drop at the idea of Reath knowing that she _did _have one. _"Ditto and Blastoise aren't going to be very good against this Ampharos. I can't afford them to be too injured right off the bat. I have to help the others when I'm done here! I have to think…"_

"But…" Reath then dug into her pocket, pulling out her own Keystone. The red gem on Ampharos' tail started to glow as it was actually a Mega Stone. "If you don't have anything to offer, I suppose I can make this one quick."

And that's when Takeba's face paled. "Oh no…"

.

.

Ash and the others sprinted into Neo-Cipher's HQ! It was vaguely reminiscent of the building they had in Kalos. "I sure hope that Takeba's going to be okay…" Mallow mumbled.

"I can understand the sentiment." Scott said. "But you've seen her battle. When she puts her mind to something, she can surprise even the smartest of people." He spoke from experience. Takeba managed to surprise him numerous times during the Regional Tournament.

"I know she looks out of it most of the time, but trust me, she always pulls through when we really need her to." Marcus said with a confident grin. "Aside from that, when did they have the time to build this!? It's huge!"

"Probably when they were hiding out." Lovrina sucked her teeth in annoyance. To think that Cipher had gotten nice and cozy on the mountainside. The group came to a halt in a large circular room. There weren't any other pathways so they hit a dead end off the bat.

"Uh…so what now?" Lana asked.

"There must be a secret path somewhere…" Sophocles surmised. But where? He hadn't the slightest clue.

At that moment, a screen appeared in front of them. Those who were on the screen were…Miror B and Venus! They were expecting Ein at least, but this was a subversion of their expectations. "Hello everyone! Welcome to our lovely little hideout!" Venus said, clasping her hands together, her sweet, yet malicious smile hidden under the veil around her mouth. "It's not much, but I do hope it'll be enough to accommodate our guests!"

"Venus!" Grace shouted.

"Ah ah, please hold all questions until after the video presentation!" Venus wagged her finger. At the very least this confirmed that the video feed was two way.

"I must say, I think you're all looking groovy in those outfits of yours!" Miror B slapped on the compliment while dancing in place. "I'm sure you're all eager to dance with us, right? Well, who are we to say no to that! I hope you all don't mind the partners we've assigned to you!"

"They what?" Kiawe didn't like the sound of that. "Have you been waiting for us!?"

"Oh, but of course! In order to get the best out of your dance partner, you must know everything about them!" Miror B grinned. "It looks like the gang is all here, too! Perfect! We've got so many people waiting to dance; they can barely hold their excitement!"

"The Shadow Pokémon are waiting for the chance to cut loose!" Lovrina giggled.

"We're prepared for your Shadow Pokémon!" Rui said confidently. "Don't get too comfortable, you'll be going right back to jail when we're done here!"

"And you'll see why you shouldn't underestimate us or Alola!" Lillie exclaimed.

"That's right, we're here to win!" Ash said.

"So why don't you just make this easy for us?" Elizabeth flipped her hair. "Also, I'm surprised, Venus. I would've expected the screen you're looking at to crack by now. Your makeup is horrendous. I know you're trying to regain all that lost glory from when Kasumi kicked your butt, but it's just not working."

That comment infuriated Venus. "You little-!" She cleared her throat, preventing herself from saying things that children shouldn't be hearing. Taking a deep breath, she smiled and lifted her hand. "I'll enjoy watching you all suffer. Beep." She then pressed a button, causing the floor to open up under the Ultra Gaurdians. Before they could register what was happening, they all fell through and the floor closed again immediately.

"GAAAAAAAAH!"

"Have a nice fall~. See you real soon~" Venus waved before walking off. "This is going to be so, so much fun…" She gripped the Pokeball in her hand tightly. "I'm going to get my revenge."

.

.

It all happened so fast, Mallow had no idea what happened. One second she was falling, the next she was tumbling into a room, landing face first on the cold hard ground. "Ouch…" She sat up and shook her head. Luckily Shaymin was still with her as well. "Are you okay, Shaymin?" Shaymin nodded. "Good." She then stood up, glancing around. "Lana? Kiawe? Lillie? Ash? Sophocles?" She called out but to no avail. I think we've been separated…" Not great, since Mallow was the one who was carrying the supplies to heal everyone in a pinch. "We have to hurry and find them! If something bad happens…!"

"Aw, man…are you serious…?" That voice belonged to Dakim. He was standing on the other side of the room and he looked disappointed more than anything else. "I got stuck with the small fry!?"

"Ah…!" Mallow's eyes widened. Dakim was far bigger than Lovrina and Rui warned her!

"Hm…" Dakim's eyes then wandered to the Shaymin hiding behind Mallow's leg. "Whoa, is that a Shaymin!? Huh…Ein would love to turn that into a Shadow Pokémon. All right, hand it over." The large man demanded. "Let's do this the easy way. You don't really have a chance of defeating me."

"No way!" Mallow shook her head. "Shaymin is my friend and I won't let you try any of your twisted experiments on it! Tsareena, let's go!" Mallow tossed a Pokeball into the air, calling out her Tsareena, who was ready to fight Dakim.

Mallow's predictable response made him grin. "Well said! You may not be much, but I think we can get a decent warm up out of you! Swampert, it's time to crush them!" Dakim tossed his own Pokeball into the air, calling out his Swampert. He didn't care of the type advantage was not in his favor, Dakim was always one for raw power anyway.

"Tsareena, use Magical Leaf!" Mallow commanded. Tsarenna jumped forward, tracing both hands in a circle before releasing powerful leaves in Swampert's direction. Mallow held the type advantage, but watching Ash fight, and fighting Lana in the League told her that it was more than just what was the surface!

"Block it." Dakim commanded. Swampert held its arms over its body, shielding itself from the Magical Leaf. What was an extremely effective move hardly did any damage to the water type, much to Mallow's surprise. "Now, Ice Punch!" Ice covered Swampert's fist and it lunged forward, preparing to strike Tsareena!

"Wha…!? Mallow's eyes were wide as Magical Leaf did far less than she expected. "Quick, Trop Kick!" Tsareena leapt forward with her leg extended, clashing with Ice Punch. It was a battle of strength that she did not win, as she was quickly slammed into the nearest wall! "Tsareena…!" Tsareena recoiled from the hit, but she shook her head and stood in front of Mallow, preparing to keep going.

"Hahaha…" Dakim let out a chuckle. "It doesn't matter what kind of Pokémon you bring against me. WE'LL CRUSH YOU!"

.

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What a tumble that was. Kiawe stood up immediately, taking a quick look around his surroundings. The room he was in was nothing special, so it didn't seem like Cipher had as much time to decorate as they wished. "I wonder where everyone else ended up. I hope they're okay."

"Your friends are the last thing you should be worried about!" Gorigan said with a sinister chuckle. "Lucky me! I get to pulverize one of the actual threats!"

"A threat? Me?"" Kiawe held a smirk on his lips. "That's very flattering, but it won't get you anywhere. I know you're up to no good, and I promise you that I won't allow any harm to come to Alola by your hands!" Kiawe then tossed a Pokeball into the air, calling out his Turtonator! "Turtonator, let's go!"

"You might be a strong one in Alola, but that's nothing compared to the power I've got!" Being out of jail really invigorated Gorigan. So much so that he was brimming with energy as he tossed his own Pokeball out into the air. "Looks like you've been stuck with a bad matchup, kid! Poliwrath, let's crush him! Use Cross Chop!" Poliwrath crossed its arms over its body in an X-formation, lunging forward with the intention of violently chopping Turtonator!

"Use Dragon Tail!" Turtonator tucked into its shell, its tail spinning around violently. Turtonator used this momentum to spin forward, whipping its tail forward to clash with the Cross Chop. The result was a stalemate right off the bat, neither side yielding and refusing to give an inch. Kiawe grit his teeth while Gorigan grinned. Things were only just getting started inside of Neo-Cipher's base!

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While the battles kicked off in Mt. Lanakila, Folly was assigned a very important mission. He took his trusty Noivern and flew across the ocean from Ula'Ula island all the way to Melemele! It wasn't a long trip for him since he left before the Ultra Guardians got close to their hideout and he landed near Professor Kukui's house. It was still early in the morning but he didn't want to take any chances. He looked inside with a pair of binoculars, spotting Burnet and Kukui inside. Perfect. "This is my chance. That Professor is tough, so I have to act before he can." Returning Noivern, he had a brilliant idea!

Inside the house, Burnet was beginning to make breakfast. To tell the truth she was a little anxious about this battle with Cipher. "I hope they're all right."

"They'll be fine." Kukui reassured his wife with a smile. "They'll hit him hard and fast with a Take Down, and then be back with Extreme Speed!" The Pokémon move jokes only helped Burnet. Anyone else would've groaned if they heard them.

"You're right. They're all strong kids who've grown." Burnet did feel more at ease now. She then glanced up at the second floor, where Moon, Pichu, and Kommo-o were still sleeping. "I'm surprised she's still sleeping. I wish I could be as worry free as she is."

Ding dong! The doorbell rang! "Huh? I wonder who that could be so early in the morning?" Maybe it was Oak? Kukui wasn't sure. Still, he opened the door with a smile. "Alo-!" And before he could get that last syallable out, Folly's Exploud punched him in the gut, causing him to fold over. "…!"

"Sorry about this, man. But orders are orders." Folly shrugged and motioned for Exploud to throw Kukui out of the house, which it did, leaving the winded professor on the gound.

"Kukui!" Burnet gasped. It was then that her Munchlaw sprang into action, Headbutting Exploud after what it did to Kukui! Unfortunately it didn't appear to do much damage and it was backhanded into the table. "Munchlax! Why are you here?!"

"For you!" Folly said, arms crossed. "See, we need a bargaining chip to take down our enemies. You're the most expendable person, so…" Exploud then nudged him. "Huh?" The pokemon pointed at Burnet's stomach, making a few gestures. This caused Folly's face to go beat red. "What!? She's pregnant!? Wow. Okay. Uhm. I wasn't prepared for this…I guess we'll have to be gentle, then. I don't wanna potentially hurt the little baby."

Burnet's eyes narrowed. "What a considerate kidnapper you are." Sarcasm.

"Sorry, about your husband…" Folly said while approaching Burnet with Exploud. "But you two were alone and he'd probably smear me across the ground if I didn't take this approach! With those kids fighting the others at the mountain, this was Ein's perfect plan!"

Did he say everyone? Burnet's eyes widened and she glanced at the second floor for a brief moment as she was backed into a corner. "MOON! PLEASE WAKE UP!"

"Huh?" Folly looked around before starting to laugh. "Are you crazy? There's no one else here! I checked with my eyes numerous times!" And that…was his folly.

"Iron Tail!"

"PIKA!" Before Folly could even finish laughing, a Pikachu appeared from seemingly nowhere, slamming its tail across Exploud's face. The impact was so strong Exploud staggered backwards and Folly was now screaming in fear.

"WHAT THE HECK!?" Folly gasped.

"…Good morning." Burnet let out a sigh of relief.

Moon had just woken up, her hair was all over the place and she was still in her pajamas, but she knew a desperate cry for help when she heard one. She glared down at Folly, whose eyes widened behind his shades. Where did this girl come from!? He never saw her once when steaking out this place. Ein didn't mention anything about a girl who lived here either! What was the meaning of this!? "W-Who are you!? What are you doing here?! There should only be three people in this house total!" The peon of Miror B asked, his face growing paler with each passing second.

"I live here." Moon responded, her hazel eyes burning into Folly's soul. She was awake and angry. Kommo-o and Pikachu were just as displeased as she was. "What are _you_ doing here?"

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Next Time: Battle on Mt. Lanakila.


	33. Chapter 33: Battle on Mt Lanakila

The battle against Neo-Cipher kicked off on Mt. Lanakila. The Ultra Guardians had been separated the instant they stepped foot into the organization's new hideout, meanwhile Folly had gone to Melemele in attempt to kidnap Burnet, but was stunned by the appearance of Moon. As it stood right now, things weren't exactly looking great for Ash and his friends, but they had crawled their way out of such situations before. Mallow was one in a particularly tough spot, fighting alone against Dakim and his Swampert. Despite her grass affinity holding an advantage on paper, Dakim had already shown that Swampert was a force to be reckoned with. "WE'LL CRUSH YOU!" Dakim exclaimed, commanding Swampert to attack. "Mud Bomb!" Swampert spat out several globs of mud directly at Tsarenna, all of which planning to explode on contact.

"Magical Leaf!" Mallow shouted. Tsareena traced her hands in a circle, firing off multiple leaves that clashed with the Mud Bomb, resulting in numerous explosions in the room, filling the air with smoke! "Now, Trop Kick!" Tsareena darted through the smoke, appearing directly in front of Swampert with a leg extended! Tsareena leapt forward, slamming her leg into Swampert's stomach for a direct hit, causing it to slide backwards! "Again!"

Swampert slid back, grimacing from the extremely effective blow. Trop Kick's added effect even lowered its Attack by one stage as well, meaning physical strikes would do less! Still, Dakim grinned as the Ultra Guardian got greedy thinking she could land a second hit! "Barrier!" Swampert held its arms in front of its body, creating a rainbow colored barrier in front of its body! Tsareena's Trop Kick clashed against the barrier and held strong, strong enough for Tsareena to recoil after.

"..!" Mallow gasped. "Tsareena!"

"Ice Punch!" Swampert closed the distance while Tsareena was recoiling, slamming yet another icy fist directly against her face! This super effective hit caused Tsareena to tumble along the ground before coming to a halt on a knee. "Hydro Pump!" Dakim wasn't letting Mallow go that easily! Swampert followed up with a high pressurized beam of water aimed directly for Tsareena! However it was intercepted by an Energy Ball, the two attacks exploding after a brief power struggle. "Huh?"

"Shaymin!" Shaymin jumped forward, the tiny pokemon glaring at Dakim. Even though Shaymin was, by all technicalities, a wild Pokémon, it was still very faithful to Mallow and Tsareena, and as such wouldn't allow watching any harm come to them! It was adverse when it came to battling, but that wasn't going to stop it when Mallow clearly needed it most.

"Shaymin! Thank you!" Mallow let out a sigh of relief.

"This'll be a good test, I guess…" Dakim shrugged, the numbers at Mallow's disposal not making much of a difference to him. "If we're gonna turn that thing Shadow, might as well see what it can do! Mud Bomb!" Swampert fired a gigantic bomb of mud directly at Shaymin and Tsareena!

"Shaymin, Energy Ball!" Shaymin jumped forward, firing off another Energy Ball at the Mud Bomb. These two attacks exploded as soon as they made contact with each other. With the cloud of smoke as cover, Tsareena once again sprinted through, raising her leg up. "Use Stomp!"

"You think that'll work again!" Dakim scoffed. Just as Swampert swung at Tsareena, she jumped over it gracefully, slamming her foot down onto Swampert's skull with enough force to make it flinch! "What the!?"

"Now! Trop Kick! Energy Ball!" Mallow planned to make use of this opening. Tsareena swung her leg at Swampert's back, but Swampert was rather angry and grabbed her leg before it struck! This was just as Shaymin fired off an Energy Ball, so Swampert then used its free hand to catch the Energy Ball, just before it struck. "Huh!?"

"You almost had something going there, but it doesn't matter if you're a pipsqueak!" Dakim yelled as Swampert threw Tsareena into Shaymin, then threw the Energy Ball back at them, causing a green explosion that blew both grass types backwards.

"Ah!" Mallow gasped. "Are you two okay?!"

"I was right; this is a pretty decent warm up." Dakim grinned as his necklace began to shine. "But I don't think I need to waste any more time on a weakling like you. I want the bigger fish!"

.

.

The battle between Kiawe and Gorigan was picking up and fast. Turtonator vs Poliwrath, a battle of fire and water! It wasn't as clear cut as that, though, and Kiawe knew exactly what was on the line if they lost. "Poliwrath, use Scald!" Poliwrath puffed its chest forward, releasing a high pressurized blast of scaling hot water towards Turtonator!

"Turtonator, use Dragon Tail!" Kiawe commanded. Turtonator slammed its tail on the ground in front of it, upheaving it using the rising rocks to defend against the Scald.

"Well, not bad kid." Gorigan admitted. "But focusing on defense won't get you anywhere. Bulk Up!" Poliwrath then began to flex its muscles, a red aura appearing around its body as it raised both its Attack and Defense by one stage! It may not have seemed like much, but a single increase could always mean the difference between defeat and victory.

"We're just getting started! Use Focus Blast!" After making his retort to Gorigan, Turtonaor pushed its chest outward while releasing a potent blast of cyan energy! The Focus Blast rocketed towards Poliwrath at incredible speeds, soaring through the air with white hot energy!

Poliwrath held its hands out, using its newfound physical strength to hold off the Focus Blast. It was a struggle as it slid back across the ground, using all of its might to withstand being overpowered. It was a tense few seconds, but in the end, Poliwrath came out on top, flicking the Focus Blast up into the ceiling where an explosion occurred. This explosion shook the base a bit and even caused the mountain to rumble a little. "That blast wasn't half bad…" Gorigan admitted.

Kiawe grit his teeth. They went into this battle knowing that Cipher would be tough foes, but so far, this was tougher than he expected. Still, that would not be enough to deter him. It was time to shake things up and find the others. "We're only just getting started. Turtonator, use Shell Smash!" Turtonator let out a battle cry as it broke its 'shell'. Doing so sharply decreased its defenses…but in turn, its speed and power rose just as much! "If defense won't work against you, then we'll just run right over you with our pure power!"

.

.

Reath held up her keystone, causing it to resonate with Ampharos' Mega Stone. "Ampharos! Let's crush this girl together! Surpass evolution to Mega Evolve!" There were lines of energy connecting Ampharos and the keystone, and soon Ampharos began to Mega Evolve! "We don't even need to use Shadow Pokémon to beat you guys!"

"Crap!" Takeba tossed out another Pokémon, she knew that she'd need to use two in this scenario. "Ditto!" Ditto was called out! As soon as Ampharos finished Mega Evolving, Ditto's Imposter ability came into effect, allowing it to transform into Mega Ampharos right off the bat! "Ah ha!"

"Wha!?" Reath's eyes narrowed as Takeba thought she was clever! "Trying to mimic us, are you? We'll see about that! Use Dragon Pulse!" Ampharos reared its head back, gathering a large amount of energy in its mouth. It then fired off a gigantic beam of this energy directly at Ditto and Honchkrow, firing it off! This Dragon Pulse dwarfed the one used prior before Mega Evolving.

"Mirror Move!" Takeba explained. Honchkrow did as told, firing off a Dragon Pulse in response to Ampharos using it. The two attacks clashed for but a moment before Honchkrow was overpowered, both it and Ditto suffering damage as a result. "Whoa…that was a lot stronger than before!"

"Of course it was." Reath shook her head. "Didn't you know? When Ampharos Mega Evolves, it regains lost DNA it had that was once a dragon. So being a dragon type increases its power vastly! You may have copied that with Ditto, but if you can't even use it, what's the point!"

"Part dragon, huh…?" Takeba kept that in mind. "Okay, we'll do this then! Ditto, use Power Gem! Honchkrow, use Mirror Move again!" Ditto fired off numerous gems off into the sky, Honchkrow following suit with Mirror Move. This occurred until there were dozens upon dozens of Power Gens in the sky around Mega Ampharos. "Now, use Psychic!" Honchkrow's eyes shone brightly as it used telekinesis to send all of these gems down towards their foe!

"Oh no you don't! Discharge!" Ampharos let out a cry, and a strong electrical discharge to combat the dual Power Gem. It was mostly successful, however, numerous gems still slipped through the Discharge and hit its mark, causing Ampharos to stagger back a bit. "I see. So you do have a bit of a brain in there, but it won't be enough! Thunder Punch!" Ampharos closed in on Ditto, swinging its tail at Ditto's chest! It was a direct hit and Ditto nearly flew back from facing power equal to its own. "And Dragon Pulse!"

"Dragon Pulse!" Takeba commanded at the same time. Both Ditto and Ampharos released a point blank Dragon Pulse. The result was a large explosion that caused both of them to fly back with equal damages. Ditto was Takeba's trump card in a situation like this; copying the strength of an opponent did wonders when her team was weak against this very thing. "Now, use Magnetic Flux!" Her plan was to alter the magnetic field already in play. Ditto did that, but used the field in a different way, causing pieces of the ground to rise up, charged with static electricity.

"What the…?" Reath looked around. What was Takeba doing?

"Psychic!" Takeba commanded Honchkrow. Just like before, Honchkrow was using psychic to hurl the chunks of the mountain directly at Ampharos!

"The same trick won't work twice! Thunder Punch!" Ampharos swung its electrified tail around, easily shattering the incoming debris with little effort. The issue was, however, what came after.

"SUPERPOWER!" This was Takeba's gambit! Superpower came at the heavy risk of lowering Honchkrow's attack and defense, but in exchange, it was an extremely heavy hit! Honchkrow used the debris as cover and just as Ampharos destroyed the last one, Honchkrow slammed into its body with all its might! Ampharos was nearly blown off its feet from taking such a blow.

"Ack! Discharge!" Mega Ampharos was quick to recover despite receiving heavy damage. Before Honchkrow could fly away, Ampharos released a potent Discharge that caught the bird, causing it to cry out in pain as it hit the ground, struggling to move, on the verge of fainting!

"Honchkrow…!" Takeba gasped.

"Now for our special move! Gather up all that electricity and use Dragon Pulse!" Reath smirked. Ampharos inhaled once more, this time generating electricity as it did so. It then released another potent Dragon Pulse; only this time the energy was yellow, fueled with lightning as it raced towards Honchkrow, intending to wipe it off the map! There was an explosion as it collided, but not against the Pokémon they thought. "Huh?"

It was Ditto! It used its body as a shield to protect Honchkrow at the last second! That Dragon Pulse was immensely powerful and Ditto was unable to withstand it. But as it began to fall over, it glanced back at Takeba and Honchkrow, its usually blank stare filled with a heartfelt smile. Ditto then collapsed, reverting to normal with swirls in its eyes. "Oh…Ditto…" Takeba was tearing up, returning her fallen partner with a sad smile. "You didn't have to do that."

"Well, that was unexpected…" Reath admitted while shrugging her shoulders. But there was a victorious grin on her lips. "If that Ditto was your counter to Ampharos, then I guess I've won, huh? Honchkrow can barely move as is. You were kinda tough, I'll give you that."

"This isn't over yet." Takeba said with a determined stare. She then crossed her arms, causing her Z-ring to shine brightly.

"And what are you gonna do!?" Reath questioned. "Superpower failed! Honchkrow won't be able to do nearly as much damage now. If you're gonna try that Z-move, go ahead! We'll overpower you and blow you away! Supersonic whatever won't do a thing to Ampharos!"

"You're right…" Takeba admitted. Thanks to Superpower, Honchkrow wouldn't be hitting nearly as hard as before. "…But I'm not using Supersonic Skystrike."

"…What?" Reath felt a sudden fear in her heart.

"I was doing some testing earlier and found out something very interesting. You know how Mirror Move uses the last move your opponent used? Well, I started to wonder…what would happen if I used Mirror Move as a Z-move. And wouldn't you know it; I got some very interesting results!" Takeba said as Honchkrow stood up, doing its best to mirror the poses she was doing. "Now tell me, what do you think happens if I use Mirror Move with this Z-crystal!?"

Reath started to sweat. With how Takeba was acting, she felt like she knew the answer and she didn't like it. "W-What? No…That's not right…!" Did Takeba seriously bait her into using Dragon Pulse as her last used move!?

"It turns into a Z-move." Takeba answered the question. "I was doing some testing earlier with Ditto! Honchkrow's Dragon Pulse couldn't beat Ampharos, and Ditto's was even, so let's turn it up a notch! You know what they say! The sky's the limit, and now we're going to fly past that barrier!" Finishing the pose, Takeba pumped her fist into the sky, sending all of the Z-power she gathered into Honchkrow. "Z-Mirror Move then turns into…_**ULTIMATE DRAGON BURN!"**_ Honchkrow let out a mighty caw as it began to gather Z-power in its beak. This Z-power then turned into a massive dragon that it fired off, directly towards Ampharos. This was Takeba's real gambit! The Devastating Drake intended to destroy Ampharos!

"Hey, don't just stand there! Use Dragon Pulse!" Reath was panicking. How could she let this happen!? Ampharos was just as hasty as its trainer, firing off a gigantic beam of energy to clash with the Devastating Dragon. Mega Evolution vs Z-Moves never had a tenser clash! Ampharos gave it everything it had, and it looked even. But a closer look told you that Ampharos was steadily losing the battle due to the Z-move's sheer might. "No…this can't be right…!"

"GOOOO!" Takeba shouted. Honchkrow flew into the air, spinning its body around as it used Drill Peck! It flew into the middle of the Devastating Drake, wrapping that power around its body as it dove directly towards Ampharos, resulting in a gigantic explosion when colliding against it. Ampharos was thrown backwards and landed on the ground, swirls in its eyes as its body reverted to normal. It was defeated.

"No…!" Reath ignored the shaking mountain, rushing over to Ampharos. "Come on, get up…!" No response. It was totally unconscious. Now she really was regretting not using a Shadow Pokémon when she had the chance. "Gh…!"

"AHA!" Takeba took a jump for joy, hugging Honchkrow. "We did it! I knew we could!" And Honchkrow started pecking at her furiously in response to being hugged. "Ow! Ouch! You stupid bird!"

"I can't believe I lost…!" Reath placed her hands on her head and groaned. "Ein told me she was an idiot! I can't believe she blindsided me!"

"Now then, if you'll just come quietly with me-" That's when Takeba took a step forward to say something, but she ended up losing her footing and fell face first in the snow. "Oof…!"

"…." Reath sighed. "…Maybe she is missing a few screws, actually."

.

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Next Time: Clangorous Soul.


	34. Chapter 34: Clangorous Soul

While the Ultra Guardians fought Cipher at Mt. Lanakila, Folly slipped away to Melemele Island in an effort to kidnap Burnet and force the Guardians into surrender. With Professor Kukui winded from Folly's Exploud's attack, it looked like the plan was going to go off perfectly. But Folly could never have accounted for Moon, who was glaring down at him from the second floor of the house. Folly's face paled as this unknown girl's existence threw a wrench into Ein's perfectly calculated plan. "W-Who are you!? What are you doing here?!"

"I live here." Moon said, her hazel gaze burning into Folly's soul. She had just woken up from Burnet's cry for help and she was not happy. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"HUHHH!?" Folly took a step back. "You live here?! That can't be right! I've been scoping this place out for the last two days, and I've never seen you walk in or out!"

"I haven't been outside in two days. But that's beside the point." Moon then jumped from the second floor to the first floor, just narrowly managing to stick the landing. "You're one of those Cipher people, yeah? Get out."

"Gggggnnn…." Folly was sweating. This was not a part of the plan. Buuuuuut…if he could win this encounter, then it wouldn't matter! Moon's existence was still something to be wary of since he knew…literally nothing about this girl. He was briefed on all of Ash's friends in Alola, but Moon was never on that list. That's why he had a sense of uneasiness. "See…about that…I can't leave unless I take the lady with me, so if you'd be so kind to…"

"Absolutely not!" Moon exclaimed, standing in front of Burnet protectively. "Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!" Pikachu nodded and sprinted forward, gathering a large amount of electricity around its body before slamming into Exploud, forcing it out of the front door and outside! Folly had to follow and that's when Moon ran forward, too. "Pikachu, protect Burnet and Kukui. Kommo-o and I will fight him!"

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded in response.

"Moon…" Kukui was still reeling from the punch he received from Exploud.

"NOT COOL!" Folly yelled as he checked on Exploud. It was okay, but just as upset as its trainer. Folly had his Noivern out nearby; he wasn't going to fight with it, but if things did get dicey, or if he succeeded, he could use it to make a quick getaway.

Moon ran outside with Kommo-o, preparing to undergo this serious battle while still in her pajamas. It couldn't be helped. "Did you really try to attack this place while Ash was gone!?"

"Of course we did!" Folly said with a smug grin. He couldn't show weakness! "We were certain this place would be empty! All we had to do was take out the Masked Royal before he could act! But seriously, where the heck did you even come from! Ein never mentioned anyone like you being here!"

That remark caused Moon to look away. "You could say I'm not from around here." The girl then shook her head. "But I'm not gonna let you hurt these people! Kommo-o, Drain Punch!" Kommo-o roared and leapt forward, rearing its arm back as a green aura swirled around it.

"Man, that's a scary dragon…! Boomburst!" Folly commanded. Exploud took one step forward before opening its large mouth, releasing a deafening sound wave that exploded on Kommo-o, causing it to fly back.

"Kommo-o!" Moon gasped as her dragon was thrown back, but it managed to land perfectly.

"How'd you like that!" Folly said while leaning forward. "Exploud is a master of sound! Its Boomburst hits harder than any other!"

"Oh yeah?" Moon was more than willing to challenge that. "Clanging Scales!" Kommo-o's scales began to vibrate, generating an intense sound. The dragon then threw its arms forward, releasing numerous shockwaves of sound towards Exploud! It was a direct hit! At least…that's what it looked like, but in truth, Exploud was completely fine. "Huh!?"

Folly was shaken at first, because Clanging Scales really did look like it was about to do a lot of damage. But he then realized exactly why the move failed! "Ah ha! Exploud's a master of sound! So it's only natural that its ability, Soundproof, would block out all forms of weak noise! I'm one of Miror B's top men, so I know my way around a battle!" He was also, until recently, one of _two_ men in Miror B's group, so he wasn't really saying much. "Now Shadow Ball!" Exploud fired off a potent orb of darkness towards Kommo-o, watching it explode on contact. "Ah ha…huh?"

As the smoke cleared, Kommo-o was completely fine. "Bulletproof." Moon said before retaliating immediately. "Focus Blast!" It was Kommo-o's turn to attack! It quickly fired off an orb of raw energy towards Exploud faster than Folly could issue a command. The Focus Blast exploded against Exploud, sending it flying into the air. "Nice…!"

"Exploud…!" Folly gasped. Exploud landed on the ground, shaking its head. It had taken an Iron Tail and Volt Tackle from Pikachu directly, so Moon did have a bit of an edge going into this battle. "Man, this girl is actually a bit of a problem…okay, use Boom Burst on the sand!" Exploud did that, releasing a sonic cry that caused a large amount of sand to erupt in front of it!

"What the…!?" Moon had to shield her eyes from the sand, as did Kommo-o! This was a makeshift Sand Attack as they could barely see anything.

"Hit 'em where it hurts! Ice Fang!" Folly shouted. Exploud emerged from Kommo-o's left, chomping down on its arm with its frigid fangs! Kommo-o cried out as it tried to shake Exploud off, but it wasn't budging! Its arm was also beginning to freeze over, much to Folly's enjoyment. "Yeah, keep it up!"

"Kommo-o…!" Moon gasped. "Use Drain Punch!" With its free arm, Kommo-o slammed its fist into Exploud's face! It forced it to let go with the super effect hit, and it even gained some health back. "Okay, now!"

"Boomburst!"

"Clanging Scales!"

It was a clash of sound! Boomburst vs Clanging Scales. Unfortunately for Moon, there was no way for her to win this trade, as Exploud was immune to her ace move! The only way this ended was in a draw, both sound attacks exploding against one another. It was time for Folly to pull out his ace in the hole. "Disarming Voice!"

"What?!" Moon gasped. Exploud released a wave of sound that was far different than any other. It was a voice that would make even the sweetest of fairies jealous! Disarming Voice was a fairy type attack, Kommo-o's most volatile weakness, and it was a direct hit on the fighting dragon, causing it to roar and stumble back in pain. "Kommo-o!"

"Do it again!" Folly commanded. Just as he ordered, another Disarming Voice caught the staggering Kommo-o, the sound wave throwing it down to the ground.

"Oh no! Use Focus Blast!" Kommo-o was snarled while placing its hands on the sandy ground. It wasn't going to be able to let out another attack in a timely manner, as two Fairy Type hits really had it pushing its limit.

This was his chance! This mysterious girl was tough, but the upper hand was his! "Quick, finish this with Boom Burst!" Folly shouted. Exploud released another extremely potent wave of sound towards Kommo-o to finish it off. But at the last second, Moon's Pikachu jumped in the way, taking the full brunt of this attack. The wave of sound violently erupted against the electric mouse, hurling it into the sand. "Wha…!?"

"PIKACHU!" Moon gasped and rushed over to her pokemon, lifting it into her arms. "Why did you do that!? You were supposed to protect them…!"

"Pika…" Pikachu offered a smile. It was heavily damaged after taking a hit like that. "Pikachu…"

"Ah…" Moon's gaze lowered. It was almost as if she knew what Pikachu was saying. "I know…I should've won by now. But I…my mind's been all over the place lately. I can't seem to do anything right."

Folly tilted his head. What was going on right now? "Uh, you there? Does this mean I win? Because if so…"

"Even now, I'm struggling in a fight I know I should win, but I just…" As Moon trailed off, Pikachu used its strength to hit her with a Thunder! It was entirely uncalled for and shocked everyone. "GAAAH!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted at her again, telling her to get her head in the game.

"Oooow! Why'd you do that!?" Moon pouted. Although she knew the answer. She was more than awake now and set Pikachu down to the ground, staring at Kommo-o, who was on its feet. "Sorry, Kommo-o. I haven't been at my best lately. You deserve more than what I've been giving. I have to do better! I have to be better! Burnet and Kukui are behind me…and I have to protect them…!" That's when Moon pulled out a dark blue Z-crystal from her pocket, placing it into her Z-ring. At that moment, the Z-ring began to shine as she crossed her arms. "If I don't, then everyone's gonna be in trouble! I can't be so weak that I put everyone in danger! I may not belong here, but I refuse to drag them down!"

While Moon was having her little episode, Folly was attempting to sneak back into the house. That all halted the instant he heard the sound of a Z-ring. This was also the first time Folly noticed the Z-ring on her wrist and his eyes widened. "Oh no…!" He wasn't warned about this either.

"A Z-move…!" Burnet gasped. Would Moon be able to pull it off? She knew about her recent failures.

"I'm not an Ultra Guardian, I'm not even a resident of this Alola…but these people have been kind to me and put up with me these last few weeks. If you think you can just walk in here and hurt them, then you have another thing coming! I won't let Cipher have their way when people I care about are on the line!" Moon held her hands apart, slowly spreading them like a dragon's maw. This caused the Z-power to flood into Kommo-o, who let out a mighty roar. "Show them your fighting spirit, Kommo-o! _**CLANGOURUS SOULBLAZE!**_" Kommo-o's scales started to jingle louder than before with intense vibrations. The dragon then leapt into the air, releasing a gigantic, vibrant soundwave that utterly annihilated everything in its straightforward path! To Moon's surprise, this Z-move was…actually working! In this case, it wasn't a matter of if she _could_ do it, she _had _to do it, because the situation was more than just her and she knew that.

"AHHH!" Folly braced for impact like he was the one getting hit! It was Exploud who had to tank the entirety of the blast! There was a gigantic explosion that shook the beach, and despite how strong that Z-move was…Exploud was completely fine. It was a sound based move after all. Folly stared in utter shock as he somehow managed to stay in the game. "Hahahaha! Hahahaha! Wow, did you forget about Soundproof!? And here I thought you were a threat…!" That's when he saw a brilliant light appear around Kommo-o's body. "…Huh?"

"I didn't forget about Soundproof." Moon said with perhaps her first smirk since arriving in this other Alola. She then pointed behind Folly, where his Noivern was. That massive attack was never meant for Exploud. "I just needed to get your guard down for a second so I could use that attack. Clangorous Soulblaze only raises Kommo-o's stats if it hits something…and Noivern was sitting right there. I couldn't let you get away even if I did lose…which I never planned to."

"W-What the…!?" Folly took a step back. It all happened so fast, but Moon seemed like a completely different person than a few moments ago. She had the foresight to completely shut down his means of escape and used that to her advantage as well!? "Who ARE YOU!?"

"My name is Moon. Alola's Champion!" Right as she said that, Kommo-o's eyes flashed red and a blazing red aura flared around its body. Without even needing to command it, Kommo-o used outrage, entering a berserker state, rushing towards Exploud at high speeds!

"U-Use Diarming Voice!" Folly shouted frantically. Exploud was just as frightened and unleashed another sound wave, hoping this would put Kommo-o down, but that wasn't happening. Kommo-o barreled through it instead! "GAAAH!" Before Folly could even issue another command, Kommo-o was brutally assaulting the Exploud with numerous blows it could barely keep up with. "Ice Fang!"

No dice. Kommo-o slammed its fist into Exploud's open mouth before it could even try biting it. Moon and Kommo-o were completely in sync, giving off an extremely intimidating aura that was never even felt from her before up until this moment. "Stay away from my home." And to finish things off, Kommo-o released a Focus Blast at point blank range, completely consuming Exploud and threw it back onto the sand, completely defeated. With Noivern and Exploud down, Folly was not only defeated, but trapped on Melemele.

"Gnk…! This is bad…!" Folly pulled out his communication device, trying to reach Ein. "Ein! Ein! We got a real problem he-!" Before he could say anymore, something picked him up by his collar and stole his device. It was Kukui's Incineroar and it was not happy about the intruder. "AIIIIIIIIIE!"

"Don't worry, Moon. We'll handle the rest from here." Kukui said with a smile. "Looks like you really hit him hard with that Outrage, huh?"

"What?" Moon blinked, snapping back to how she was before. For a moment, she felt like returned to her 'old' self. It was fleeting and she couldn't remember a time she felt more confident.

Burnet knelt down, wrapping her arms around Moon for a hug. "Thank you for protecting us, Moon. I knew you had the strength."

Moon paused, Burnet's words hitting hard. "I…I protected someone?" It felt like she wasn't able to do that for the longest time. But hearing it now…it brought tears to her eyes. Kommo-o and Pikachu joined in on the hug, congratulating Moon for pulling through.

Kukui walked over to face Folly, who was shaking in his boots now that he'd been defeated. "Now then, friend. We're gonna call Officer Jenny and we're gonna have a nice long chat about this, yeah?"

"Eep…" Folly wanted to run away, but that was impossible now. Boy oh boy…did Moon really screw things up for Cipher….

.

.

Mallow was having an extremely difficult time. Dakim Mega Evolved his Swampert, and despite having the advantage in typing, Dakim had the sheer advantage in strength. Tsareena was at the end of her rope and Shaymin was looking worse for wear. "He's too strong…" Mallow mumbled under her breath. This situation was not the best for her. No one noticed the small cracks in the wall off to the right…

"Man, how stubborn…" Dakim shrugged. Mallow should've been defeated by now, but of course her Pokémon chose to cling to consciousness! Not that it mattered to him too much, since his ultimate goal was grabbing Shaymin. So he simply started to walk over with his Swampert. "Oh well. I'll be taking the spoils of victory now. This'll make up for having wasted my time!" The cracks in the wall grew bigger…

'No!" Mallow stood in front of Shaymin and Tsareena. "I won't let you!"

"You don't really have a choice." Dakim then gripped Mallow by her wrist, lifting her up into the air. She tried to squirm free but Dakim was physically superior. He then tossed Mallow aside and she let out a grunt of pain. "So, little Shaymin…." And then the wall finally burst open, a wave of water sweeping Dakim and Swampert away due to being caught off guard. "Hey!?"

Emerging from the broken wall was Lana and Primarina! Mallow's eyes lit up as her best friend arrived in a timely manner. "Lana!"

"Eh?" Dakim picked himself up; having to look down the shortest person he'd ever seen. "Ahaha! Is this pipsqueak next?!"

Dakim was laughing, but Lana had a fierce gaze in her blue eyes. If one looked closely, you could see the rage of the ocean in her eyes. "Stay away from my best friend."

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Next Time: Size of Your Strength.


	35. Chapter 35: Size of Your Strength

Just when the situation turned grim for Mallow, Lana appeared at the last second, standing in front of her along with her Primarina. Dakim and his Mega Swampert were exceedingly tough, despite Mallow's advantage over them. That was precisely why Mallow couldn't hide her smile as her best friend made her timely arrival. "Lana…!"

"Are you okay?" Lana turned back to glance at Mallow.

"Mhm…" Mallow nodded slowly. Even though Tsareena and Shaymin weren't KO'ed, it was hard for her to not consider this battle as a loss. "Thanks to you."

Lana gave a nod, issuing Primarina to make a command. It was silent, but Primarina created a large bubble for Mallow and her Pokémon to seek refuge in. A battle between water types was about to ensue, and she wanted to ensure her friend was protected from the impending raging waves.

"Ha!" Dakim couldn't help but laugh. It was almost insulting that this tiny girl believed she could take him on! The large man took a few steps forward, and to his surprise, Lana did as well. "You're really gonna take me on, pipsqueak!?"

"Yes." Lana looked up at Dakim without a single trace of fear in her eyes. In fact, all you could see was determination in her blue gaze. Despite the fact that Dakim was more than twice her size, she had no fear. "You're bringing danger to Alola and most importantly, you tried to hurt my best friend. I can't let either of those acts go unpunished as an Ultra Guardian."

"Is that so!? Hah! We'll crush your tiny size easily! Our strength is in our size and you'll regret standing up to me, little girl!" Dakim looked down at Lana with a condescending sneer. Stepping on small bugs was a fun pastime of his. The silence between the two of them remained tense, both trainer and Pokémon staring one another down until…

"Ice Punch!"

"Aqua Jet!"

Water erupted around Primrina and it used this to propel itself forward at high speeds, gunning to slam Swampert in its chest. In turn, Swampert reared its large arm back as ice appeared around it. The two attacked at the same time, causing a clash of powers. In terms of raw strength, Swampert was the victor, pushing through the Aqua Jet to strike Primarina square in the face, forcing it backwards. "Once again!" Lana commanded, unfazed that Primaina took damage as she knew it could withstand it. Primina did as commanded, circling around the room as it spotted an opening, then dove in to attack!

"Barrier!" Dakim shouted. Just as Primarina closed in, Swampert turned. While it was unable to physically retaliate, it was able to create a barrier in front of its body, using this to protect itself from Primarina's Aqua Jet. It was a fierce stalemate for a few moments before Primarina was forced backwards. "Hah! What's the matter? I thought you were gonna stop us!"

Lana kept a stern expression. Now she was beginning to understand how Mallow had such a hard time combating Dakim; strength truly was his asset. But that wasn't grounds for her to give up. "Icy Wind!" Primarina exhaled, releasing a frigid blast of air in Swampert's direction.

"That won't faze us!" Dakim smirked as Swampert simply used its bulky arms to block the attack. Parts of it arms froze over slightly, but it wasn't enough to cause any lasting damaging. "Is that the best you got, pipsqueak!?"

Lana didn't respond, instead she issued another attack since it appeared that Dakim didn't notice the trap she laid out for him. "Now, use Sparkling Aria!" Primarina stood up on its tail and began to sing, creating a large orb of water over its head. It then threw this orb of water towards Swampert, where it turned into multiple bubbles, all of them set to explode!

"Dodge it!" Dakim knew his Swampert's speed. Such an attack was easily avoidable! Swampert jumped to move, but found that it couldn't! "What?!" Dakim's eyes widened as he looked down at Swampert's legs, only to notice that its legs were covered in ice! "What the!?" It was from Icy Wind! "No way!" And right as the disbelief struck, Sparkling Aria hit its mark, blowing Swampert backwards from the sheer number of explosions! "Gah!"

"Nice work, Lana!" Mallow cheered.

Swampert took the attack rather well, but even so, it still did take some damage from Mallow's Pokémon, so it was slowed just a little bit. "Ha…not bad, shrimp. You're giving more of a fight than the weaker one over there."

Those words made Mallow frown. "Ah…"

Lana, however, wasn't hearing it. Before she spoke, Primaina created an air bubble around her head. "Mallow is strong, too. If she needs to lean on me for help, then that's fine! We've been friends forever and that's no sign of weakness! Use Surf!" Any insult aimed at her friend would not be tolerated. Primarina let out another cry with its beautiful voice, summoning a tidal wave within the small room. The wave crashed down, filling the room with water! Mallow and her Pokémon were fine due to the bubble they were in, and Lana was accustomed to these conditions since she swam all the time like this! She forced Dakim into an awful situation and if she were lucky, she could make him concede! "Aqua Jet!"

Dakim was forced to hold his breath. Swampert didn't have any tricks like Primarina…but that didn't stop Dakim from smirking. Obviously Lana knew what she was in for, dragging a water type into the water, but she was about to learn that she bit off more than she could chew. Dakim needed to say nothing; as Primarina drew near with Aqua Jet, Swampert showcased a sudden, superior burst of speed, swimming ahead and slammed Primarina with an Ice Punch, much to Lana's surprise.

"What!?" Lana gasped from this outcome. Her plan backfired; Mega Swampert's ability was Swift Swim! Not only that, but Dakim and Swampert were able to work without verbal commands. "That's fine…even if it's faster than us, we can still hit it. Use Sparkling Aria!" Primarina did as commanded, releasing numerous bubbles towards Swampert, all of them set to explode.

Dakim pointed his hand forward, commanding Swampert to use Mud Bomb!" Swampert spat out an equal amount of muddy spheres as bubbles, causing an explosion within the water! The water was filled with mud, turning it murky and obscuring sight.

"I can't see them…" Lana said while looking around. They could strike from any angle!

Mallow noticed them. "Lana, behind you!"

Just as Mallow turned, she saw a Hydro Pump slam into Primarina's body, throwing it for a loop within the water. Just before Primarina could recover, the blue blur that was Swampert sped past Lana, assaulting Primarina with a series of Ice Punches that all hit their mark; the final one slamming Primarina into the ground with enough force to cause a crack in the floor! As a result, the water in the room slowly began to drain away. There was enough room for Dakim to lift his head up from the water and take a breath. "Ah ha! How'd you like that!?"

"_We have to slow it down…If he wants to keep striking with Ice, then…" _The water was draining, but Lana had a plan. "Icy Wind!" Primarina exhaled, releasing frigid air into the water as Swampert drew closer for another Ice Punch.

"We ain't falling for that again! Dodge it!" Dakim exclaimed. Swampert did as told; evading the Icy Wind, but it was odd how Primarina wasn't stopping. "What the hell…" Not only was the water getting uncomfortably cold, but what was worse was that Swampert was slowing down! "Huh!? No way…!"

Just as Lana planned! Icy Wind made the water cold, thus slowing down Swampert's speed. While it was having difficulty moving around, Primarina was fine! "Now, Aqua Jet!" Water exploded around Primarina and it rushed forward, slamming into Swampert to knock it backwards! Just as this happened all of the water finally drained and the room was back to how it was.

"Go Lana!" Mallow cheered. Lana was fighting on even ground with Dakim!

"Huh. So you're smart, too…" Dakim scratched his head. Brute force was the only strategy he knew, so he couldn't help but slightly respect, and feel annoyed by Lana's tactics. "But too bad that won't matter in the end. Our strength will crush you, ain't that right, Swampert?" Swampert was beginning to show signs of exhaustion, but clearly it wasn't down yet.

"Ngh…" Lana narrowed her eyes. Swampert was handling the punishment it was receiving quite well…on the other hand; Primarina was looking more exhausted than it was. "You're strong, I admit…but I can't let you win." She held her arms up, her Z-ring shining.

"Oh no you don't!" Dakim knew exactly what Lana was attempting and he wouldn't stand for it! "Ice Punch!" Swampert slammed its frozen arms onto the ground, its raw power not only creating a tremor, but also sent icy spires along the ground towards Primarina! "No Z-moves allowed here! That trump card won't work on us!"

"Ah! Watch out!" Lana shouted worriedly but these frozen spires struck Primarina, causing it to stagger back after receiving more damage than either Pokémon or trainer would have liked. _"He won't let me use the Z-move…!"_

"Ah…!" Mallow gasped as the spires even popped the bubble she and her Pokémon were inside of. They were unharmed, but now Mallow was exposed to the potential raging waters again. "I'm fine…!" She told Lana immediately so she could focus on the battle. _"She can't use her Z-move…!" _Mallow grit her teeth. When she glanced at Shaymin and Tsareena, they were still recovering from their injuries.

It was time for a different approach. "Aqua Jet!" Primarina once again soared forward, but this time it was moving about in the air, circling around Swampert with its superior speed. _"I'll find an opening and strike!" _It was a tense few seconds, Dakim and Swampert both attempting to keep up with Primarina as it sped around room. She'd exploit a use of Barrier and hit them with a point blank Surf! "Now!" Primarina dove down at the unsuspecting Swampert, intend on baiting out a Barrier when…

Swampert grabbed Primarina by the throat, just before Primarina could strike! "Gotcha." Dakim smirked.

"Ah!" Lana's eyes widened in horror. With Swampert's grip it was as though it were using a Throat Chop and sealed Primarina's voice. "Primarina!"

"Ice Punch." Swampert reared its free hand back, slamming it into Primarina's body. This blow was incredibly strong and Primarina flew into the nearest wall.

"AH!" Lana immediately made a beeline to her partner. "Are you okay?!" Primarina's damage was reaching its limit. It wasn't down, but it was heavily damaged and struggled to get up.

"Lana…!" Mallow started to rush ahead, but she was stopped when Swampert stood in her path. "Oh no..!"

Dakim reached out, gripping Lana by her left arm, raising her into the air. Since he was bigger and stronger, this was an easy feat and all she could do was squirm around in her grip. "See, pipsqueak? It doesn't matter how strong you think you are. Against someone like me, you're just a small fry. That's why strength will always win out in the end. You can't even fight back, can you?"

"Ngh…!" Lana was really squirming around. Unfortunately, due to her size, she couldn't even try and reach out for Dakim. She was a ragdoll in his possession.

"Now, I'm not above hurting kids. So I'll make you a deal. Hand over your Pokémon and you and your friend can go." Dakim was giving Lana an easy way out. Unlike in Kalos, he didn't know what made these Alolans tick.

"No." Lana shook her head.

"Figured." Dakim shrugged. "Then I guess I'll have to just…" And before Dakim could say anymore, Sandy called itself out of Lana's other Pokeball! The Eevee slammed its tiny body into Dakim's face. Since he wasn't prepared for it, he staggered back and released Lana, annoyed. "What the hell?!"

"Sandy!" Lana held a smile on her face while rubbing her wrist. "Thank you!" Sandy nodded and moved to attack Swampert while it was off guard, putting all of its momentum into a Double Edge! It was slightly effective and Swampert stumbled…only to retaliate with an Ice Punch that would make Hammer Arm jealous. The downward swing crushed Sandy into the floor and KO'ed it instantly. "Sandy…!"

"Sandy!" Mallow placed her hands over her mouth.

"And just what was that tiny little thing supposed to do? It had no strength at all." Dakim shook his head. "All it did was annoy me! You tiny kids are just like Durant! You may have numbers, but it doesn't mean much against someone twice your size."

"…." Lana clenched her hand into a fist. "You go on about the strength of one's size…and it's true, you're bigger than us, and stronger, too. But there's one thing you should never underestimate." She thought back to how, despite being backed into a corner numerous times, how Ash fought his way out. Not just Ash, but Moon as well. Even though Moon felt so small and meaningless around them, there was no denying that when they watched her battle, it was with all her might. Even though Mallow was outmatched, she didn't give up. That was the strength Lana was looking for at this moment.

"Huh…?" Dakim lifted a brow.

"And that….IS THE SIZE OF OUR STRENGTH!" As Lana shouted that, Primarina stood back up, a blue aura flashing as veil of water exploding around its body. This was Torrent activating! When in a pinch, water type moves were empowered!

"Primarina!" Mallow's green eyes lit up with hope. "It'll be so strong now, but…it's also at its limit. Come on, Lana. I know you can finish this!"

"Shaymin!" Shaymin added its cheers along with Tsareena.

"Kch…" Dakim grit his teeth. "Hydro Pump! We don't have time for this!" Swampert fired off a large Hydro Pump towards Primarina, intent on finishing off its foe!

"Sparkling Aria!" Primarina stood up on its tail once more, creating a bubble in front of it. The Hydro Pump struck the bubble and the volume of water only made it that much bigger!

"What!?" Dakim took a step back. "It can do that!?"

"Fire!" Lana pointed her hand forward. Primarina fired off the Sparkling Aria, now much stronger thanks to Torrent and Swampert's aid! The multiple bubbles exploded around Swampert, causing it to cry out in pain as it was overwhelmed from the numerous attacks. "Don't let up! Aqua Jet!" The impending Aqua Jet was far stronger than the previous ones! Primarina rocketed forward to slam its body into Swampert's!

"Barrier! Don't let that thing break through!" Swampert held its ground, creating another barrier in front of it as Primarina drew near. It was a fierce stalemate, but this time Primarina shattered the barrier, slamming into Swampert full force. "Tch! Mud Bomb!" Primarina wasn't getting away with this free hit, however! Just as it was struck, Swampert spat out a large bomb of mud that erupted in Primarina's face, throwing it backwards. By this point, both Swampert and Primarina were reaching their absolute limit.

"Let's end this!"

"Aqua Jet!"

"Ice Punch!"

Primarina and Swampert collided with each other, creating a fierce shockwave that boomed our throughout Cipher's base. It was a fierce stalemate, on that Primarina seemed to be losing, as ice slowly started to cover its body from Swampert's attack. This is where Dakim smirked, feeling as though the battle had been won. "Give it up, kid!"

"Never!" Lana shouted. If Cipher had their way like this…then her mother, father, sisters, Moon, Mallow, and all her other friends would be in danger. Even though she had yet to see a Shadow Pokémon herself, the strength of Dakim alone told her that Alola would be in huge trouble if Cipher won here. "There's too much at stake for me to give up! Swampert's size and strength have already hit their apex, but Primarina and I haven't released our full power yet!" That's when Lana crossed her arms, the Waternium-Z shining brightly. "In this moment, Primarina and I are fighting as one!"

"What the?!" Dakim glanced at the Z-ring. He couldn't have Swampert stop attacking now! If it let up on Primarina, Was this her plan!? Rendering him unable to do anything as she used a Z-move!

"It's time! The ocean's wrath is now upon you!" Lana moved her arms in a wave like motion, finishing the pose to send Z-power flooding into Primarina. "And now, we'll bring you under! _**HYDRO VORTEX!**_" Water erupted around Primarina, even more so than before! It used this water to break the ice surrounding it, using the surge of power to overpower Swampert, circling around it while entrapping it within a strong vortex of water that it couldn't escape from!

"This can't be! Swampert, get out of there!" Dakim yelled at the top of his lungs, but was no use. Swampert was at Primarina's mercy until the vortex of water dispersed, violently throwing it into wall! Swampert's eyes had swirls in them. It was defeated and reverted back to normal. "…."

"YOU DID IT!" Mallow jumped for joy, immediately hugging her best friend after the narrow victory.

"Ah…yeah…we did." Lana leaned against an exhausted Primarina, who nearly collapsed on the spot. "Thank you, Primarina. You too, Sandy. You both fought so hard, you deserve a rest."

"…." Dakim furrowed his brows. He was fuming! He couldn't believe he lost to…that small girl! She was barely even his size. "…Damn. You got me…this time…" Dakim returned Swampert and started to walk off.

"Hey, come back!" Mallow shouted.

"We're not done…!" Lana did take a step forward, only to shake her head. The priority right now was helping their injured Pokémon.

Even if Mallow and Lana wanted to pursue, they couldn't. Their Pokémon were too injured to give chase, and even Dakim knew when to retreat. "I didn't think I'd need a Shadow Pokémon against them…! That girl…her strength was admirable…" And that respect for Lana was the reason he didn't get physical with her or Mallow. He'd fall back…for now.

.

.

Team Rocket's hot air balloon finally arrived on Ula'Ula Island. They didn't stop to land, however. They only had one destination in mind. "This is where those twerps were going, right?" Meowth asked his partners in crime.

"That's right! They were flying off towards Mt. Lanakila!" James confirmed. "And if that's the case, that must mean that Cipher is hiding away somewhere on that mountain!"

Jessie then pointed her index finger forward, a wide grin creeping onto her lips. "Watch out, Cipher. Team Rocket's going to take you down a second time! In the name of Team Rocket and Giovanni, there won't be any mercy!"

.

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Next Time: Pillar of Flame.


	36. Chapter 36: Pillar of Flame

There wasn't much Reath could do after losing to Takeba. All the defeated grunt could do was sit in the snow, sighing as Takeba fumbled around with her phone. "Hello?" The pinkette spoke into the phone.

"…_How'd you get this number?"_ The voice on the other end belonged to Nanu. He was clearly irritated for a number of reasons.

"Oh, Lovrina gave it to me. She wanted us to call you in the event we found and captured Cipher members! They are on Ula'ula after all, so isn't it your responsibility to get involved?" Takeba twirled some of her hair around her finger.

Even Nanu had to admit that Takeba was right. He did say that if it wasn't on his island, it wasn't his problem…but that wasn't the case. Nanu let out a heavy sigh and it sounded like he was getting up from his chair. _"Seriously? They just had to hide away on this island, didn't they? Man…" _

"_I told you that you should've been helping on the spot…!" _Acerola was speaking in the background. _"We should go help them!"_

"_Agh. Where are you all, exactly?"_ Nanu asked.

"Mt. Lanakila!" Takeba said.

"…_.Of course." _Nanu let out another sigh. _"Couldn't be anywhere else…all right, all right. I'm on the way…" _And then he hung up, sounding pretty grumpy at the end of it.

"And that is how you call the police." Takeba was very proud of herself. "So just sit tight and stay warm. I'll be keeping you company until your police escort arrives."

"Ugh." Reath rolled her eyes. It was pretty embarrassing losing to Takeba. "And you think you'll be able to help your friends once I'm taken away?"

"I have to." Takeba looked towards the building that wasn't too far away. "I know Cipher isn't anything to take lightly."

"Well, having said that." Reath sat up in the snow, staring up at Takeba. "I think you should learn about the little trap we set up. You're all too late to stop it anyway."

For some reason, Takeba stiffened up. It wasn't a good thing when the bad guy was informing you of a trap they had laid out. "Eh…?"

Reath could take a small victory in Takeba's reaction. "Just as you all left Melemele Island, we sent Folly to Professor Kukui's house. In a matter of minutes, he'll be back with the Professor's wife as a hostage, and unless you want her to get hurt, it would be easier to surrender now."

"Wha?!" Takeba's green eyes widened. "How do you guys even know where his house is!?"

"Pssh, we've been tracking all of you for the last two days." Reath waved a hand. "So we know that by the time Folly gets there, even he'll be able to sucker punch the Professor and get the woman before it's too late. Alolans are far too friendly and that's such an easy trait to exploit. Since they're all alone in there, it's only a matter of how fast he gets back. And since you and all your friends are here, there's not really anyone who can stop him."

Takeba remained silent for a few moments. Her lips curled into a frown before…turning up into a smile. "Well, I had to admit, you really had me scared for a second. I don't know what we'd do if Burnet became a hostage, since she's expecting and all."

Takeba's dismissive attitude annoyed Reath. "Hey, why are you acting like the situation is already wrapped up nicely! We have you cornered!"

"Do you?" Takeba smirked. "You said we're all here, right?"

"That's right!" Reath exclaimed. "That dumb kid Ash and his friends, and you and the others! That's everyone accounted for from our days of investigating."

"Ah…so that's how it is. Then we've no reason to be worried. You see, you didn't account for one thing." Takeba leaned forward, placing her hands on her hips. "We have a secret weapon at our disposal! Of course you'd never know, since that person hasn't been outside with us the last few days. But as long as she's there, I know she won't let any harm come to either Kukui or Burnet."

Reath didn't like the confidence Takeba had in her voice. Did their plan go awry somewhere?! "W-What are you talking about…?"

"You see…!" Takeba was just about to explain with a smug grin, but that's when she noticed Team Rocket's hot air balloon closing in from a distance. "Huh? Is that…?"

.

.

Since Mallow was the one with the healing supplies, she took the liberty of using a few potions and berries to restore Shaymin, Sandy, Primarina, and Tsareena. "Thank goodness you came when you did, Lana. That man was really strong."

"I'm just glad I was close by." Lana flashed her best friend a smile. "I wish we were able to go after him, but he's a lot bigger than us…" They weren't going to do much at the time with injured Pokémon.

"Me too. I just hope the others are okay." Mallow and Lana started walking down the same corridor Dakim took his leave from. Even if they weren't going to catch up to him, they could at least try finding the others.

"Yeah. You know, I had a thought during the battle…" Lana thought back to her fight with Dakim. "First, his muscles were really big…"

"Lana!" Mallow chided her friend.

"T-That aside…!" Lana shook her head, snapping out of it. "He was really strong. Didn't Lovrina say they had Shadow Pokémon here, too? We haven't fought one, but if he was that strong without one, I'm a little worried about what we'll do if we do have to fight one. Ash said they were extremely powerful…"

"Mm…" Now that Lana brought it up, she did have a point. Mallow could barely hold her own against a regular Pokémon. If it was a Shadow Pokémon… "I know Lovrina and Rui said they had a way to deal with them, but I don't think they were anticipating us getting separated like this."

"We'll be okay, though!" Lana held a reassuring smile. Even if the situation around them was tense, Lana had the confidence that they would be all right. "Everyone is strong. We'll be done with Cipher before you know it."

That was just like Lana, always cheering Mallow up. Mallow smiled and gave a vigorous nod. "Mhm!"

.

.

"Shell Smash!" Kiawe's command was about to ramp this battle up. A defensive battle style wasn't going to work against the likes of Gorigan and Poliwrath, which was fine by him. Turtonator let out a battle cry as it broke out of its 'shell' sharply lowering its own defenses for the sake of raising its offense. "Now, Dragon Tail!" The spiky dragon bent over, whipping its tail around before sprinting ahead at amazing speeds! Spinning like a top, it slammed its tail against Poliwrath's body, the increase in power causing the water type to crash into a nearby wall.

"Oh!" Gorigan was impressed by this sudden display. The intensity of the battle got to him and suddenly he took a pose similar to that of a Primape, jumping up and down ferociously as Poliwrath stood back up. "Cross Chop!" Poliwrath shook off the impact and jumped forward with its arms crossed, slashing Turtonator's chest with a direct hit! The powerful blow forced the dragon type to skid backwards across the ground. While Turtonator was now dealing more damage, it was also receiving more damage as a result. "Water Pulse!"

"Flamethrower!" Kiawe reacted on a dime. Turtonator recovered from the Cross Chop and exhaled a strong burst of flame from its mouth. Fire and water collided, resulting in a stalemate that was an explosion of steam that filled the entire room, making it difficult to see.

"Cross Chop!" Poliwrath dove through the steam, aiming to attack Turtonator, but to its surprise, it struck nothing but air!

"Focus Blast!" With its amazing speed, Turtonator appeared to Poliwrath's left, already releasing a condensed sphere of energy from the hole in its chest. This was a direct hit, exploding upon Poliwrath and sent it skidding backwards yet again, the damage beginning to rack up. Kiawe was feeling confident and believed he could bring this battle to a swift conclusion if he kept this up. "Dragon Tail!" Turtonator repeated its actions from before, swinging its tail at dangerous speeds towards Poliwrath.

"Heh…" Gorigan had the timing down now. The Cipher Admin smirked as Turtonator came barreling it, and now it was time to unveil his secret weapon. "Submission!" Poliwrath started to sprint forward, only to stop just before Turtonator actually hit it. It shifted its body to the side, allowing the dragon to completely miss its target! Right when it did, Poliwrath gripped Turtonator with its massive arms, being careful to avoid touching the spikes on its back while squeezing it tightly. "Gotcha!"

"Turtonator!" Kiawe gasped. Turtonator was a large Pokémon, so to think that even Poliwrath would be able to hold it in such a tight grip! "Get out of there!"

"Oh, we'll be letting it go soon! Bulk Up, then throw it!" Poliwrath complied to this notion, spinning around a few times before leaning backwards, suplexing Turtonator into the ground violently. With Bulk Up increasing the strength of its grip, and its defenses, this impact hurt Turtonator a lot more than the recoil did Poliwrath.

"Turtonator, are you all right!?" Kiawe asked worriedly. His partner was indeed heavily damaged, but not out of the battle just yet. "Good. Hit it with Flamethrower!"

"Charge right through with Cross Chop!" Poliwrath once again moved in with a Cross Chop, dashing right through the Flamethrowe that no doubt dealt damage to it. Poliwrath closed the gap and slashed at the Dragon with its arms once more, the increased impact throwing Turtonator to a wall, getting stuck by its spikes. "Heh! Bulk Up again!" Poliwrath flexed

"Oh no…" Kiawe grit his teeth. Shell Smash was indeed a risky play, since Turtonator was more vulnerable. Clearly he needed to up the ante as well. "Shell Smash again!" Turtonator complied, breaking its shell once more. At the cost of extremely high offense and speed, the once durable Pokémon was now a glass cannon.

"All or nothing, huh? I respect it. Bubble Beam!" Gorigan had a little respect for the fight Kiawe was putting up, but even so, he was confident that it wouldn't be enough. Poliwrath fired another barrage of explosive bubbles towards Turtonator.

"Dragon Tail!" Kiawe commanded. Turtonator spun forward, popping the bubbles while making way towards Poliwrath. With its speed, it was going to be hard to evade and even Gorigan must've known this.

"Submission!" Which is exactly why Gorigan had a plan. Poliwrath held strong against the Dragon Tail, holding its ground as the powerful attack nearly outweighed its increased defenses. At that moment, it wrapped its arms around Turtonator once again. They were chest to chest, only this time it didn't look like Poliwrath was letting go. "You shouldn't have gotten close! This time we're gonna squeeze until you drop!"

Kiawe remained silent for but a moment. The situation would've been bad…if it were the other way around. "This is just what I wanted, actually. Because now…you can't avoid this. Focus Blast!"

"What!?" Gorigan's eyes widened under his glasses. Turtonator's chest was directly against Poliwrath's…and that's where the Focus Blast came from. It was point blank so there was no reason to second guess if it hit. Poliwrath was forced to release Turtonator and slammed into a wall, falling onto a knee. "Damn…!"

"Now!" Kiawe crossed his arms, his Z-Ring beginning to shine brightly. "Let it burn! My fighting spirit, and become the zenith of all that I am!" As he spoke, he slammed his foot on the ground, Z-Power surrounding him as it emanated from his Z-Crystal. "And I'll burn even stronger than the fires of Wela Volcano! Go, Tutronator! _**INFERNO OVERDRIVE!" **_The Z-Power flooded into Turtonator, who used this energy to create a gigantic sphere of fire within its mouth. With a loud battle cry, Turtonator released this sphere of flame, allowing it to fly forward as it passed Gorigan and exploded against Poliwrath, causing the base to tremble from the sheer power of its flames.

"GAAAH!" Gorigan had to cover his eyes from the brightness of the flames. The result was rather clear when it was all over: Poliwrath was defeated. "N-No way! What am I supposed to tell Ein and Ardos!?" As he asked this, he rolled backwards and covered his face, returning his defeated Pokémon. "No wonder we were told to watch out for you…you kids are tough. I almost respect it, if it didn't dash my reputation!"

"There's nowhere to run." Kiawe crossed his arms. Even though he used his Z-move, and Turtonator was a little exhausted, they clearly weren't going to let Gorigan get away that easily.

"Ghh…" Gorigan was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He wasn't going to be escaping this situation so easily…no doubt Turtonator would outs peed him before he could make a run for it. His options were limited… "I guess you got me…"

.

.

"Hmph…" Trudly was eying his watch, tapping his foot impatiently. "What's going on with Folly? He should've been back by now. Even if something came up, there's no reason he shouldn't be able to call and tell us…" The area Trudly was in was a bit different than the rest of the base. Since they built it on Mt. Lanakila, some parts of the base were inside of the mountain, thus leaving it a little chilly than most.

"Oh, watch out…!" Lillie warned Sophocles, who almost stumbled over. They ended up together and now were standing across from Trudly, who yelped in surprise since he was genunenly hoping nobody showed up to him. "Oh…!"

"Whoa…!" Sophocles stood up straight while staring at Trudly, who was doing his best look intimidating.

"Well well…!" Trudly held out a Pokeball was staring at the two in front of him. Luckily he had tinted shades on, so they couldn't see the slight lack of confidence his eyes had. "Looks like you two were unlucky enough to face me!"

"This one isn't an Admin…" Lillie said aloud. That didn't mean she was underestimating him, but she could kind of tell he didn't have the same presence as the others.

Trudly couldn't refute that, but he could take offense to it. "Hey! I'm still a member of Cipher like everyone else here! And you're unlucky, because you're going to taste the might of a Shadow Pokémon!" This immediately made the two stiffen up, which swung the mood back in Trudly's favor. "That's more like it!"

"A Shadow Pokémon…" Sophocles muttered. He and Lillie called forth Snowy and Togedemaru respectively, the two tiny Pokémon prepared to do battle. They were small, but underestimating them because of their size would be a mistake, just as Lana showcased to Dakim earlier.

Lillie thought back to the Shadow Drapion encounter had with Moon. Unlike the rest of her friends in Alola, excluding Ash, she knew how terrifying a Shadow Pokémon could be to fight. A wild one was threatening enough, but to think a Trainer could actually control those beasts. "It's going to be really strong, no matter what it is…"

Trudly had their attention and fear now. If he could exploit this carefully, this battle was all eyes! "This one's special! Coalossal, go!" Trudly threw the Pokeball into the air, calling forth a Pokémon that wasn't native to any other region. Coalossal stood at 9 feet tall, towering over Snowy and Togedemaru.

"W-what is that thing!?" Lillie was understandably shaken at the sight of this unfamiliar Pokémon. She hadn't even read about it before! If only Rotom was here with them!

"I-I don't know…!" Sopchocles was just as shaken as Lillie. Trudly didn't look like much, but he brought a powerhouse with him. Lillie and Sophocoles didn't need special vision, or even Trudly's word to see that they were fighting an incredibly powerful Shadow Pokémon.

Trudly adjusted his glasses, letting out a sinister chuckle. The evil feeling was starting to finally vibe with him. "And now…you'll be crushed."

Lillie shook her head, steeling her gaze as she pointed a hand forward. She was an Ultra Guardian and she wouldn't back down from this fight. "Snowy, I'll be counting on you! We have to give this one everything we have and more!"

"Vul!" Snowy jumped forward, finding the resolve to fight since Lillie needed its help.

"Right! Togedemaru, we can do this!" Sophocles said with just as much confidence. Lillie and Sophocles were in for an extremely tough fight…but neither of them would bow down that easily.

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Venus sat on top of Steelix's head, legs crossed, looking down at the two who happened to cross paths with her. It was so ironic it brought a smile to her face. "Well well…how lucky am I to be graced with such a fated meeting? It's been such a loooong time…" Who was Venus looking down on? Two of her least favorite people: Grace and Marcus. Grace had her Salamance out, while Marcus was at the ready with Gallade, the two of them glaring up at Venus. They could never forget the pain and agony she caused Kasumi. "I've missed you two oh so much!"

"Venus!" Grace grit her teeth.

"Lucky us. I was hoping to see your face again soon." Marcus said while looking up at Venus. It annoyed him that he had to do so, since he knew that Venus enjoyed looking down at them.

"We have some unfinished business with you." Grace told the Admin.

Venus brought her hand to her mouth, looking surprised. "Oh, you do? That's news to me. As far as I know, my business with the both of you concluded a while ago. Right, Mini-Venus?" That name was more than enough to invoke Grace's ire. "I see you still have that façade of cool and collected…but deep down you're just rash and hot blooded. So unattractive for a lady of your age."

"I'm sure it's very easy to speak when you're all the way up there!" Marcus shouted.

"What? You want me to come down and put myself on your level? I'm far too good for that." Venus scoffed and ran a hand through her hair. She then pulled out a Pokeball and tossed it into the air, calling forth a Ninjask. "I'm also far too good to battle you myself…so I'll be watching this Shadow Ninjask do the job for me."

"You are so…!" Grace grit her teeth. Venus had the audacity to belittle them and not even fight them herself! This was just like her!

"If you want to fight me so badly, then just beat the Ninjask." Venus snickered. Clearly that was easier said than done. "Then again, it's not like you'd be accomplishing much anyway. Defeating me won't bring back your friend or the damage that was done to her. Then again, that wouldn't have happened in the first place if you didn't try and stand up to me at the time."

"…!" Grace felt a sudden rush of anger. Anger because Venus was the only person who could press buttons no other human alive could. "Salamance!" Salamance let out a roar and started to fly towards Steelix and Venus.

"Grace wait…!" Marcus hated when this happened. Grace rarely got so angry, but it was only around Venus that this happened.

"So predictable. You're just as easy to provoke as before." Venus yawned and snapped her fingers. Ninjask acted on that cue, shadow energy exploding around its body as it slammed into Salamance with a Shadow Rush! The impact was so strong and fast, Salamance hit the ground violently and was stunned for a bit.

"Ngh…" Grace kept her gaze on Venus.

"All this time apart and you've barely grown at all. It's honestly so sad to watch." Venus shifted her legs, staring down at her targets. "You're hardly worth my time, but I suppose I can play a little bit with you. I wonder how long you'll last before you'll break…"

.

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Next Time: Shadow Dominance.


	37. Chapter 37: Shadow Dominance

The battle against Cipher continued on Mt. Lanakila. Some members of Cipher had taken a defeat, but no one was in captivity yet, at least, as far as Ein was concerned. There were some acceptable losses thus far. Ein was checking the status of everyone on his computer, furrowing his brow. Some people had yet to get into conflict, some were in the midst of a battle, and others had just finished their fight, for better or worse. But there was one thing he couldn't place his finger on it. "Where is Folly? I grow tired of watching this game." It was then he glanced at the monitor, tracking Folly's location via his communication device. "Still on Melemele? He best hurry up soon. I don't want these kids thinking they actually have a chance." Shaking his head, he then noticed something else approaching: Team Rocket. "What!? What are they doing here?!"

.

.

"There it is: Cipher's base!" Jessie pointed down to the building attached to the mountain. "They made themselves comfortable in Alola."

"But now it's time to crash their little party!" Meowth said with a wide grin.

"And if we're lucky, we can even steal their Pokémon while we're at it! We can't lose in this situation." James gleamed. Team Rocket arriving late to the party was a tactical move! With Cipher and the Ultra Guardians busy battling each other, it gave them the perfect window to swoop in and attack.

'Mimikyu!" Jessie called out Mimikyu, pointing to the roof of the Cipher HQ. "Use Shadow Ball and make us a way in!"

Mimikyu stood at the edge of the hot air balloon, staring at the task it had been given. "Kyu." And in response it simply crawled away to the other side.

"It said it doesn't want to unless Pikachu's involved." Meowth translated.

"Did you know that Pikachu is inside that building somewhere? We didn't come all this way to not try and catch it, too." Jessie clasped her hands together, trying to appeal to the one thing Mimikyu cared about the most.

Instantly, a dark purple aura flared around Mimikyu as it was filled with killing intent. It charged a Shadow Ball and fired it towards the roof of the Cipher HQ, destroying it and making a clean hole for infiltration. "KYU!"

"That's the spirit!" Jessie grinned as James put the balloon down onto the roof. "Prepare for trouble, Cipher!"

"And make it double!" James added.

.

.

Venus sat happily, watching Shadow Ninjask do all the work she was too bothered to do herself. With each passing second, Ninjask was getting faster and faster due to its Speed Boost, much to the annoyance of Grace and Marcus. "What's the matter? Don't tell me one simple Ninjask is too much trouble for the top 4 contenders of the Regional Tournament? I thought you two were so much stronger than that~"

"I forgot how annoying you were!" Marcus grunted. "Gallade, Psycho Cut!"

"Aerial Ace." Venus flipped her hair. Gallade swung its blades arms forward, releasing several crescent blades of kinetic energy. Ninjask deftly flew through the incoming onslaught, slipping through each and every blade before slashing at Gallade with its arm, causing the knight to slide backwards from the hit.

"Fire Blast!" Grace shouted. Salamance reared its head back as flames gathered within its mouth. It then released a massive burst of flames in hopes of catching Ninjask, but the Pokémon was far too fast, swiftly evading the explosion of flame while closing in on Salamance. "You're kidding!?"

"Shadow Blitz." Shadow energy gathered around Ninjask as it slammed its body into Salamance, the added power of the Shadow causing it to crash into a wall as a result. Venus yawned, filing her nails while vaguely paying attention to what they would call a fight. "Did you lose your edge the last time I saw you? Being bullied by a little Ninjask."

Grace and Marcus looked at each other. They were not going to stand here and be belittled by Venus like this. "Gallade, Vacuum Wave!" Gallade swung its arm forward, creating a current of wind that rotated in a counterclockwise rotation, the pressure slowly dragging Ninjask in. It naturally tried to escape with its speed, but it wasn't fast enough to escape that easily.

"Now, Zen Headbutt!" Salamance flew forward with psychic energy swirling around its head. With Ninjask trapped, it was able to score a direct hit, sending Ninjask into a wall after taking heavy damage. Ninjask groaned and slowly buzzed back up to flutter around.

Venus noticed what happened and sighed. She put her nail file away and stood up. "Ah…I should've known you would've thought you were that fancy." She then started to descend Steelix, using each segment of its body as a step to aid her. "I was hoping Ninjask could have a little fun on its own, but that wouldn't give me the satisfaction of crushing you myself."

"Taking us seriously now?" Grace said with a smirk. "I was afraid this would be too easy."

"Hohoho!" Venus laughed. "Cocky for someone who got swept before. But if that's how you wish to play this game, then I certainly don't mind making you look like a mockery in front of your friends again! Steelix, Iron Tail!" Steelix instantly swung its massive tail down, Gallade and Salamance just barely able to evade it.

"Yup, she's serious!" Marcus said with a grin. Losing to a Venus that was mocking them was a serious blow to his pride. At the very least they could flip the tables on her attitude towards them now. "This means she'll throw a fit when she loses again."

"I have that recording saved on my phone. I love it." Grace grinned.

Venus would never be able to live down her meltdown on global television. Being reminded of it made her angry. Public humiliation on a global scale all because of Kasumi. Brought down at her highest point and being made a mockery of it. "Ooooh…you two. I'm going to thoroughly enjoy crushing your hopes and dreams underfoot! I'LL DESTROY YOU!" Just as she said that, Ninjask flapped its wings, releasing a Shadow Wave that was similar to a Heat Wave! The intensity of the attack made Marcus, Grace, Gallade, and Salamance recoil.

"Tch…!" Marcus grunted. This battle really was just beginning. Despite her attitude, Venus was, without a doubt, one of the most dangerous enemies they could've been fighting.

.

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Even a low level grunt like Trudly could be a threat with a Shadow Pokémon at his side. Shadow Coalossal stood tall against Snowy and Togedemaru. Lillie and Sophocles knew they were in for a tough battle, but simply because the odds were against them didn't mean they were going to lose. Trudly, however, planned to make this happen. "Okay, Coalossal! Listen to me and use Heat Wave!" The rocky behemoth did just that, roaring out before spewing out magma from its mouth in all directions, aiming for Snowy and Togedemaru.

"Snowy, watch out!" Lillie shouted.

"Togedemaru, use Zing Zap!" Sophocles was going for the bold play. Todgemaru spun around through the Lava Plume, narrowly evading the flames and managed to slam against Coalossal! Sophocles believed that Togedemaru's momentum would force Coalossal to stagger, but he was proven wrong as the 9 foot giant didn't budge. "No way!"

"It didn't move at all…" Lillie furrowed her brows. "Snowy, Powder Snow!" Snowy exhaled, releasing a strong gust of frigid wind towards Coalossal. It was a direct, but just as before, the behemoth didn't budge. "Did that even do damage!?"

"Who knows!" Trudly shrugged. "This baby is one hell of a fire type! Based on the information we have about you two…this is the worst matchup you could've had. Now, Shadow Fire!" Coalossal inhaled before releasing a sphere of darkened flame towards Snowy and Togedemaru. At least, that's what it looked like. The sphere of fire flew past the two Pokémon and nearly hit Sophocles and Lillie, but they were able to duck at the last second! "Whoops!"

"Eep…!" Lillie cried out. "Did you try to attack us!?"

"Not exactly." Trudly shrugged. "Listen, kid…this thing is under my control, but I can't stop it from lashing out at what it wants. So I let it go on a little rampage. _I_ have no intention of hurting you, but I can't say the same for my little friend here. So just try to survive, your battle won't mean much in the end anyway."

"It sounds like he's just playing with us…" Lillie mumbled to Sophocles.

"We'll show him that we're not toys!" Sophocles pointed his hand forward, initiating his attack. "Zing Zap again!"

"Snowy, use Tackle!" Lillie shouted. The two Pokémon ran side by side and slammed into Coalossal together. Their combined might managed to make the giant take a single step back, but not more than that. "Still not enough?"

"Not even close! Now watch this light show! Tar Shot!" Trudly grinned as Coalossal fired off blobs of tar at Snowy and Togedemaru, lowering their speed along with forcing them backwards.

"Tar Shot?" Sophocles was quickly running in his mind what was about to happen and soon it became clear. "It's not gonna…!?"

"Heat Crash!" Coalossal then leapt into the air, flames igniting around its body as it intended to use its full weight to crush Snowy and Togedemaru. The two Pokémon moved in a panicked haste, but they were slowed by the Tar Shot!

"Togedemaru, use Spike Shield!" Sopocholes commanded. Togedemaru pushed Snowy out of harm's way before turning its back to the incoming Coalossal, spikes protruding from its back as a puesdo-Protect. There was a brief stalemate as Togedemaru was actually able to hold its own for a little bit. But that didn't last very long as Coalossal's overwhelming weight crushed it, causing a small tremor within Mt. Lanakila. "Togedemaru!"

"Oh no!" Lillie gasped.

Togedemaru had been defeated. It put up a good fight, but against this giant, it simply wasn't enough. Trudly let out a chuckle as things were going smoothly for him, for once. "Hahaha! I gotta say I didn't expect the short one to catch on so quickly. Tar Shot lowers your speed and also makes you more susceptible to fire type attacks!"

"Thank you, Togedemaru." Sophocles returned his first Pokémon with a smile. "Vikavolt, it's your turn!" The typing still did no favors for them, but Vikavolt was his ace in the hole. The bug type did have one massive advantage over Coalossal. "Use Wild Charge!" Lightning coated its body as it flew around the area, faster than Trudly was able to track it.

"What the!? Tar Shot!" Coalossal tried to shoot Vikavolt down, but the bug type was far too fast for it. Each Tar Shot was a miss and the caverns/walls of the base were coated in tar. "I can't hit this damn thing!" And that's when Vikavolt struck, slamming its body into Coalossal's. This had much more of an impact than before, forcing the behemoth to stagger back a few steps.

"Now, Snowy! Powder Snow!" Upon Lillie's command, Snowy tried to exhale, but had some trouble. It wasn't the tar on its body, but rather, it was struggling to pull off something different. It took a few seconds, but Snowy fired off a weak Ice Beam which ultimately amounted to nothing when it hit Coalossal. "Ah…! Was that Ice Beam?"

"Tch! Shadow Fire!" Trudly commanded, aiming to shoot Vikavolt out of the sky, but each Shadow Fire missed its target, causing annoyance to the trainer and the weaponized Pokémon.

"String Shot!" As Vikavolt flew around Coalossal, it spewed thin string around its body. Every complete loop it made resulted in string to pile on, effectively slowing it down even more! "Now, Signal Beam!" With Coalossal unable to move, Vikavolt fired off a Signal Beam that landed directly. "Lillie!"

"Snowy, use Ice Beam!" Keep trying until it works. That's what Ash taught her and Snowy. Snowy exhaled yet again, firing another Ice Beam that hit its mark, a little stronger than before. "That's it!"

"Damn it! Heat Wave!" Coalossal roared yet again, expelling a tremendous amount of heat from its body. Due to the wide radius of this attack, Vikavolt and Snowy were caught and forced back. Snowy took much more damage than Vikavolt due to the tar covering its body.

"Snowy!? Are you okay!?" Lillie rushed over to her injured Pokémon, but the Alolan Vulpix stood up.

"Circle around it again!" Sophocles said, commanding this battle with the speed advantage. This only confused Coalossal as Vikavolt was nearly impossible to keep up with. It couldn't land a hit.

"Powder Snow while it's confused!" Lillie shouted. Snowy fired off another strong, continuous Powder Snow to pile on the damage. Their teamwork was doing wonders and Lillie believed they could actually prevail!

"Heat Wave!" Trudly waited until the Powder Snow hit Coalossal to use Heat Wave. The cold, frigid, snowy wind then turned into water droplets that fell onto Coalossal. The moment that happened, Coalossal roared as steam emitted from its body, increasing its body temperature. "There we go!"

"W-What just happened?" Lillie asked.

"There's no way you Alolans would know this. But Coalossal a Pokémon from a faraway region called Galar, and its ability is called Steam Engine. Whenever it gets hit by water, it…its speed is maximized!" As soon as Trudly said this, Coalossal appeared in front of the speeding Vikavolt, much to everyone's surprise. "Shadow Fire!" Coalossal released a point blank blast of flame at Vikavolt, consuming and carrying the bug type across the cave, where it met a tar covered wall spot! That's when the flames ignited the tar, causing an explosion that caused Vikavolt to spiral into the ground.

"No way!" Sophocles gasped.

"It's so fast…!" Lillie gulped, feeling now that this was her fault for playing right into Trudly's hands.

"Heat Crash!" Coalossal sprinted forward with speeds rivaling a Ninjask. The gigantic rock Pokémon then jumped into the air, coming down with all its might towards the recovering Vikavolt.

"Look out!" Sophocles exclaimed. Vikavolt was able to move in the nick of time, but Coalossal's impact still caused destruction to the surrounding area. Coalossal utterly destroyed this part of the mountain, the ground shifting and breaking apart under them.

"W-Whoa…! I-I...!" Lillie staggered as the ground gave away under her. She tried to jump away, but it all happened too fast, and she started fall backwards. It became apparent how high they were up on the mountain, and Lillie was about to plummet to the very bottom. "AAAAAAAAAH!"

Sophocles and Vikavolt could only watch helplessly as Lillie began to fall. "LILLIE…!"

Lillie screamed as she fell, everything all happening in slow motion. She wasn't sure what to say, feel, or even think. She didn't know what was going to happen as she watched herself fall from the mountain. She ultimately closed her eyes awaiting whatever awaited her, but she had a very soft landing, much to her surprise. "H-Huh…?"

Sophocles' eyes lit up. "You're here…!?"

Lillie opened her eyes slowly, trying to take it all in. Her heart was still racing from her fall. When she looked down, she saw that she was on a Braivary. But then her eyes looked up and they widened in surprise. Her savior was a most unexpected person. "Y-You…!"

Moon held a soft smile while staring at Lillie. After the battle on Melemele, she finally made her decision to join in the Ultra Guardians Fight against Cipher, and arrived in the nick of time to save Lillie from a most certain fatal fall. "Hey. Sorry I'm late. You okay?"

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Next Time: Counter.


	38. Chapter 38: Counter

Prior to Moon arriving on Mt. Lanakila, she was first subject to watching Folly be 'tortured' after his defeat. Officer Jenny and Samson Oak arrived at Kukui's house and were also witness what Folly was deeming cruel and unusual punishment. "Gaaaah! Please stop…!" Folly cried out. What was happening to him? Kukui's Incineroar was holding him in a pin, busting out the wrestling moves to damage Folly mentally more than physically. Currently, the Cipher member's arm was bending in ways that were far from normal.

"I told you," Burnet began while waving a finger. "This is your punishment for breaking and entering into my house, hurting my husband, and getting rough with Moon. It would be in your best interest to spill everything you know, otherwise it won't stop."

"C-Come on…!" Folly looked towards Officer Jenny. The situation was truly dire when he was turning to the police for help. "Isn't this cruel and unusual punishment!?"

"You're trespassing on their property." Officer Jenny said, giving Folly a look of disbelief. "And you're a criminal with a record. I think you're getting off easy if you ask me."

"Ack…" Folly's face turned blue. In the next instant he was in a different position, his legs now bending due to Incineroar's strength. It was going easy on him.

"All it takes is a Bulk Up for things to get a little tougher for you, friend." Kukui adjusted his hat. "So I do suggest you spill the beans. Despite the fact you Sucker Punched me earlier, I actually don't want to hurt you. I can't say the same for my wife, however." One look at Burnet said it all; she was barely withholding the malice, only because she was asked to.

"Gah! Okay! Okay!" Folly folded as he was being folded. He couldn't take this anymore. "It was all a trap! A setup! We were just trying lure that brat and his friends to the mountain so we could get rid of them in one fell swoop!"

"What!?" Everyone said all at once.

"A trap!?" Moon gasped. "That's so messed up!"

"I'm just a grunt, okay! I don't know the specifics! I was just told to do my job! All I know is that we did a lot of research and spent a lot of time preparing this, and suddenly you show up and throw a wrench in everything!" Folly was tapping out, but Incineroar wasn't letting go. The man hit his limit a long time ago.

"I don't think he's telling the truth." Jenny crossed her arms. "Should I just arrest him now? We can question him more at the station."

"I suppose so…" Burnet huffed and nodded, causing Incineroar to release a defeated Folly. His spirit nearly left his body.

"All right, come on." Jenny hoisted Folly up, dragging his exhausted body to her police bike after cuffing him up.

"And off he goes!" Oak watched Folly's arrest. "I came as soon as I heard something had happened here and I'm glad to see everything turned out all right."

"That was thanks to Moon here." Kukui grinned at Moon. "If it wasn't for her, Burnet just might've been spirited away by the enemy's Tailwind!"

Moon rubbed her arm sheepishly. "N-No, I just…" She shook her head. "B-But more importantly the others are in danger…! I…I…"

"You should go help them." Burnet said. "You're the only one who can."

"But I…" Moon glanced away. "I don't know _if _I can. I just got lucky with that Folly guy and…!"

"Stop it." Burnet shook her head, crouching down to meet with Moon at eye level. "You just saved Kukui and I, you know that? And that wasn't luck. That was pure skill. I don't know why your confidence is so low, but you should believe in your ability a little bit more. I know they believe in you." She gestured to Pikachu and Kommo-o, who had a few berries and were more or less back up to speed.

"But what if…" Moon started.

"Is it Lillie?" Kukui asked. Moon simply nodded in response.

"I wasn't strong enough to do anything before." Moon said, her gaze shifting to the sun that had finally risen. "That memory is the one that stuck with me when I lost everything, so it scares me. I…I said some really mean things to her, too. I was trying to push her away so I didn't get that feeling of weakness again. But I've felt bad about it…I shouldn't have said those things, it wasn't fair to her."

"I know it's tough on you." Burnet said with a soft smile. "Being so removed in a place that's too familiar. These are your friends, though. And they're in danger. I know they're strong, but after what we just heard, I'm worried too. So Moon, what do you want to do?"

"I…" Moon clenched her hand into a fist. She knew the answer from the start, her lack of confidence just made it difficult. "I want to help my friends! I know they're in danger. I may be weak now, but I can't stand around here knowing that!"

Burnet and Kukui smiled at each other. Kukui then tossed a Pokeball at Moon. "This is Bravairy. It'll get you to the mountain faster than Extreme Speed! Once you get dressed, you should head out."

"Huh?" Moon glanced down at her pajamas. She had totally forgotten the first thing she did this morning was fight Folly and nothing else. Even her hair was a mess, but she could deal with that later. "R-Right!" She then hurried back inside.

"I think she'll be all right." Burnet rested her head against Kukui's shoulder. "She just needs a little push in the right direction."

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Fast forward to the present, Moon arrived just in the nick of time to save Lillie from a terrible fall. Lillie was shocked to see that Moon had arrived and before Gladion no less. "M-Moon…I…I thought you didn't want to be around me."

Moon knew that would be the first thing Lillie brought up. She frowned a bit, but still managed to keep her gaze on Lillie. "It's still hard, honestly. But I should have been separating the two of you as soon as I knew you weren't the same person. You're not the Lillie I know, but…you're Lillie, and you're my friend. That's why I'm here, because I wanted to help you guys! And when this is over, I want to start over, because you deserve that much!" Moon said that with her heart and soul as Braviary brought them back up to where Lillie had fallen.

"Moon…" Lillie's eyes widened, but she couldn't help but smile.

"Lillie! Moon!?" Sophocles was both relieved and surprised to see Moon and Lillie.

"What the!?" Trudly's eyes widened. On the one hand, he was kind of glad that Lillie was okay since he wasn't here to hurt them, but Moon's appearance raised several question marks. "Who the heck are you!?"

"I…" Moon started.

"Her name is Moon, and she's our friend." Lillie said with a slow nod. "She's one of us."

"That's right!" Sophocles held a wide smile. "And now that she's here, we have no way of losing!"

Moon wasn't expecting such a positive reception upon her arrival, but he made her smile nonetheless. "You guys…"

"Where did you even come from!?" Trudly grit his teeth.

"Oh, I took care of that Folly guy." Moon waved a hand. "He had the nerve to come into my house uninvited and try to kidnap Burnet! I couldn't let that happen! So after I beat him, Officer Jenny took him away."

Trudly's face then went pale at this revelation. "W-What…so you're the reason he hasn't come back!? But that doesn't make any sense! We were keeping an eye on who went in and out of that house for the last two days! Not only that, but there was no mention of you in our research!"

"Well that's…" Lillie began, but Moon shook her head.

"I can't blame you for not knowing about me, because, well…you couldn't have. I kinda…don't exist. I'm from a different world." Moon managed to say it with a bit of a smile, only because she was quickly realizing how big of an issue her existence in this world was to Cipher's carefully crafted plan.

"T-THEN GO BACK TO WHERE YOU CAME FROM!" Trudly said with a panicked scream. "You weren't supposed to be here! That Gladion is supposed to show up and we have a plan for him!"

"Can't." Moon then pointed her finger forward. "If you're looking for Gladion, I actually saw him on the way here and warned him about the setup, too! And I certainly can't go back knowing creeps like you are hurting my friends and Alola! Braviary, go!" Braviary responded to Moon's command, flying forward with its wings glowing.

"Snowy, use Hail!" Lillie commanded. The tar covered Vulpix let out a cry as dark clouds swirled around overheard in the cave, dropping down Hail that was detrimental to all parties involved, but Moon and Sophocles were going in despite this.

"You think I'm gonna lose to someone who doesn't exist! I can't hit a low that low!" Trudly grunted. "Heat Crash!" With Steam Engine having boosted, Coalossal was still the fastest thing on the field. Flames surrounded its body and it charged towards Braviary at unbelievable speeds to use its massive weight to overpower it.

"Aurora Veil!" Lillie commanded. Snowy let out a small howl that created a barrier around itself, Vikavolt, and Braviary. This barrier sliced incoming damage by half so long as Hail was active, meaning that Braviary was capable of withstanding the Heat Crash far better than it would normally.

"Wha!?" Trudly gasped.

"Vikavolt, String Shot!" As Sophocles made this order, Vikavolt flew around the cave, spewing string from its mouth to cover Coalossal's body, slowing it down just a little bit.

"And Ice Beam!" Lillie followed up, Snowy's new Ice Beam landing against the Shadow Pokémon, causing it to roar out in pain. "Yeah!"

The surge of emotion caused Coalossal to roar angrily, a red aura now blazing around its body, visible to all. This was Reverse Mode, which only made the Shadow Pokémon that much stronger. "That's what I'm talking about! Shadow Fire!" Of course, Coalossal's emotions spiraling out of control made it difficult to control. It only saw red and released a Shadow Fire that missed all three Pokémon, flying off into the distance with a fierce explosion. "Whoa…" Even Trudly was shaken by how strong that was, but he was also mad it missed. "Get your act together! We're not getting steamrolled by kids!"

Sophocles crossed his arms as his Z-ring started to shine. After seeing the power Coalossal had, he knew he had to put a stop to this somehow! "We're not going to let you do what you want to Alola! This is our home and you're not welcome here!" After finishing the pose, the Z-power flooded into Vikavolt and it was time to unleash their full power. _**"SAVAGE SPINOUT!"**_ Vikavolt spewed a large amount of silk from its mouth, all of this wrapping around Coalossal's body. With the thread still attached to its mouth, it then began to spin around, picking up speed!

"Oh hell no! Coalosaal, use Heat Crash!" No way was Trudly going to be done in by a Z-move! He knew what they could do. Flames erupted around Coalossal's body, the Shadow power it contained strong enough to burn away the silk. Its speed was still astronomically high, so the incoming Heat Crash was too fast for even Vikavolt. It was a direct hit and the bug type went down to Coalossal's immense power. "Hah! That's one down!" Trudly said triumphantly.

Sophocles looked down…only to look back up with a grin. "Thanks, Vikavolt. You did great."

"Huh?" That's when Trudly turned to Lillie and Moon and his eyes widened. "Wait! That z-move was a distraction!?" Z-moves were supposed to be finishers!

Moon and Lillie were acting in sync crossing their arms together and steadily rising them up with each cross. "O' freezing Z that covers the land, along with our heated souls, return now once more to the heavens!" A cyan light appeared around Lillie and Moon as the made use of the Icinium-Z together, the Z-power flooding into Snowy. _**"SUBZERO SLAMMER!"**_ Snowy let out a loud cry as the tar was washed away from its body, a pillar of ice erupting from underneath it, towering as high as it could. Snowy released a gigantic beam of ice towards Coalossal that was a direct hit, encapsulating the Shadow Pokémon in a large glacier of ice that then violently exploded. When the ice shards scattered beautifully, Coalossal was defeated.

"G-Gah…" Trudly was in complete shock. He was running the battle until Moon showed up out of nowhere, and she knew about their plan!? This was…a problem to say the least. "EIIIIN! WE HAVE AN ISSUE!" Knowing he'd been defeated, Trudly quickly ran off, returning Coalossal before doing so.

"We won!" Sophocles held his hand up for high fives all around.

"We did it!" Moon high fived Sophocles and then turned to Lillie. The tension between them was still present only a little bit. Still, Lillie lifted her hand, and Moon had the honors of giving her a high five.

"We make a pretty good team." Lillie tilted her head to the side, giving Moon and Sophocles a smile.

.

.

"Ugh…" Lovrina groaned as the building continued to shake and shake. No doubt a result of all of the intense battles going around. "They should really take it easy! Did they forget that this building is in an extremely delicate situation!? They'll bring the roof down on us at this rate."

"It does make me a little nervous." Rui said, placing her arms behind her back. "It's a little chilly in here, though…"

"That's not the real, issue here!" Lovrina sighed, then glanced over her shoulder. Rui and Lovrina weren't the only two wandering around in the base. They were with Rotom as well, which raised a lot of questions considering how they got separated. "I have a question, Rotom."

"Do you need a calculation-roto?" Rotom asked.

"No. I just wanna know how you ended up falling since you float." Green eyes stared judgmentally at the floating Pokedex. Lovrina needed to hear this.

"Oh." Rotom paused for a moment. "To tell the truth, when everyone fell…I frantically flew down as well. I didn't want to be alone."

"Aw…you poor thing." Rui brought the Pokedex in for an embrace. "I hope we're good company!"

"This is, like…the weirdest thing I've seen. At least top 5." Lovrina sighed and led the walk. A door was in front of them, confusingly enough. "Hm. I don't like this."

"What do you think is inside-roto?" Rotom floated around Lovrina, question marks appearing on its screen.

Rui focused her gaze on the door. She nearly had to recoil from what she could see that no one else could. "There are a lot of Shadow Pokémon behind that door."

"Eek…" Lovrina swallowed the lump in her throat. "I was wondering where they were being stored. Transporting them is going to be difficult…." With no fear, the pinkette opened the door, expecting to be attacked right off the bat. Turns out, the Pokémon that Rui saw were all contained in Pokeballs. "Ah."

"Oh, that's a relief." Rui sighed. "But still, there are so many!"

Rotom was going around, taking pictures of all the pokeballs in the room. "There are several dozens of Pokeballs in this room-roto!"

"These are all from the base in Kalos." Lovrina placed her hands on her hips. "I can't believe Miror B seriously made off with all of these while we were busy fighting for our lives!" As soon as she said that, a familiar beat started to fill the room. This put her and Rui on edge instantly. "Oh no…"

"And aren't I just the grooviest, sneakiest criminal you've ever met!?" The man himself said, performing a backflip from somewhere on high to land in front of the trio, dancing it out in the process. "You all made it so easy to cart them off, I couldn't help myself!"

"Miror B…" Rui took a step back while getting a Pokeball at the ready. There was no way they weren't about to fight here. "What was your reason for all this? Bringing Cipher back when you should've let it rest!" This whole situation was his fault to begin with.

Lovrina nodded in agreement. "Yeah. What's your deal?"

"Oh, my sweet ladies." Miror B began waltzing around the room, fingers dancing along various Pokeballs. Each one contained a Shadow Pokémon and they were concerned about what kind it would be. "There's only been one thing on my mind for a while now. I want to own every Pokémon in the world; simple as that. Every Pokémon in the world will march to the beat of my drum, then I'll be unstoppable!"

"So you're just another idiot with delusions of grandeur." Lovrina rolled her eyes. "Despite your gaudy appearance, you're the same as every other villain?"

"The same?" Miror B's gaze narrowed. It was hard to tell because of his glasses, but they gave a sinister glint to display his shift in aura. "That offends me deeply, Lovrina. I don't strive to be the same as everyone else. I'm here to get down and funky! If you can't understand the rhythm that I march to, then you're no different those who can't dance!" He found a suitable Pokeball and tossed it forward, the flush of light revealing an Emboar. "So let's have a fiery dance of passion!"

"Roto! Is that an Emboar! Be careful, it's extremely power-roto!" Rotom said.

"Ugh…" Rui groaned. Interacting with Miror Be was enough to test the patience of any normal person. "Espeon, let's go!" Rui called out a familiar Espeon, the Psychic type preparing to do battle. "To be honest, I was expecting a Ludicolo…"

"What a weirdo!" Lovrina stuck her tongue out in disgust. "But you've been a huge headache for me for a very long time! So I'll gladly put you behind bars! Ninetails, let's do this!"

.

.

Elizabeth and Ash were the final separated pair. Scott was the only one unaccounted for, but there was hardly any time to worry about that. Unlike the others, they were stuck in an enclosed, circular area with only one locked exit. Ash had Lycanroc used Stone Edge to try and bust it open, and Elizabeth had Zoroark use Night Daze as well, but it was just no use. "No dice." Elizabeth groaned.

"Yeah, we're stuck." Ash sighed. He wasn't giving up, so much as realizing this method just wasn't working. "I wonder if the others are stuck like this too?"

"I feel like saying no, due to all the shaking going on." Elizabeth huffed. "This is unfair. I wanted to fight, not be trapped like a Ratata!" Just as she said that, the doors finally opened. Ash and Elizabeth went on guard and were met with the oppressive aura that was Nascour's presence. "Oh you're kidding me…"

"Apologies for making you wait so long." Nascour was at least cordial with his arrival.

"That's…Nascour?" Ash had to ask. He never saw Nascour back in Kalos.

"Yeah." Elizabeth nodded in response. "Back in Kalos, this guy was more or less the reason Kasumi flew off the handle the way she did. He was intent on making sure he was the one in control of Cipher, but here he is again, working under someone."

"My goals haven't changed." Nascour insisted. "We're simply working with Ein and Miror B's plan, but I will be the one to be the Grandmaster."

"Give it up already!" Elizabeth shook her head. "You know how history repeats itself, right? If you keep doing the same thing over and over, what do you think will change? I'm surprised this organization has resurfaced so many times without taking the hint."

Nascour's pure red eyes lit up with some hint of excitement at Elizabeth's words. "History repeats itself, huh? I don't think that to be true. Last time, the Sinnoh Champion was able to bail you out at the last second. However, she is nowhere near Alola. She was the only person capable of defeating me, and narrowly, I may add."

"You lost and you had an unfair advantage. I think that says a _lot_ about Cynthia's skills." Elizabeth said with a smirk. "And we have Alola's champion right here! While he's not as amazing as Cynthia, he'll do just fine."

"…Thanks?" Ash wasn't sure how to respond to that statement, but it sounded like Elizabeth had faith in him. "Either way, we're going to stop you!"

"Pika pika!" Ash's Pikachu had sparks generating from his red cheeks.

Nascour simply shook his head. "To be young again. You may have won once before, but do not assume that we aren't prepared for you." Nascour tossed his Pokeball into the air, calling forth his Metagross, already Mega Evolved right out the gate. He wasn't planning on wasting any time with them. "This time, I'll thoroughly crush you and leave nothing remaining."

.

.

With a hole blown in the ceiling, Jessie, James, Meowth, and Wobbefett all jumped down into the base. "Infiltration successful!" Meowth said with a smug grin. "Now we pilfer the Shadow Pokémon and take Cipher down in one fell swoop!"

"A perfect plan!" Jessie grinned. "And if we encounter that attention hog Venus, I'll make sure to give her a surprise she won't forget!"

"It's our lucky day!" James grinned. But their ecstatic entrance wouldn't last forever.

"Excuse me?" This voice belonged to Ferma. She just so happened to be passing by when the roof suddenly decided to give way above her! Thanks to her Ambipom she was able to escape, but that didn't mean she was any less upset about it! "So you're the crooks who nearly crushed me!"

"Sorry about that, but not really." Jessie waved a hand. "You don't look like you belong to Cipher. It would be best for you to get a move on. You don't want to get in our way."

"We outnumber you!" Meowth said. "And we know there are other battles goin' on, and everyone will be weakened and easy to snag! It's a win-win!"

"That's the beauty of Team Rocket!" Jessie and James said in unison.

Ferma just stood and watched. "What…!? Who are you people!?"

"When you ask 'who are you people' the answer will become quite clear, and you'll soon find out…!" Jessie began.

"Noble answers are what we're all about!" James said, tossing a blue rose forward.

"The peerless beauty that strikes first and leads the assault, Jessie!"

"Still, the nobly heroic man of our times fights back against this cruel and heartless world…it's James!"

And the combat cat is ready to back up the glorious fight! Meowth!"

"Team Rocket! Let's fight!"

"That's right!"

"Wobbefett!"

"…" Ferma had absolutely no words to what it was she just witnessed. Instead she quietly groaned and tossed a Pokeball up into the air, calling forth her Yanmega alongside her Ambipom. Unbeknownst to Team Rocket, the Yanmega was actually a Shadow Pokémon. "All right then, Team Rocket. If this is the game that you want to play…I'll be happy to play along."

"She wants to fight!? Well, Team Rocket ain't being made fools out of again by Cipher!" Meowth said, his claws extending as he prepared for battle.

"A shame you said that!" James said while standing back to back with Jessie.

"Because I hope you're prepared for trouble!" Jessie said with a widening grin.

"And you better make it double!"

.

.

Next Time: Prepare For Trouble.


	39. Chapter 39: Prepare For Trouble

[Flashback]

While en route to Mt. Lanakila on a Noivern, Gladion encountered Moon. He would have arrived sooner, but the girl screaming for him to stop did warrant curiosity. Moon and Braivary stopped in front of him, which was pretty annoying considering they were on a time limit. "What do you want? I thought you weren't coming."

"I changed my mind." Moon said while shaking her head. "But that's not important. What's important is that you can't go in there yet! It's a trap and everyone's in danger."

"What?" Gladion was understandably confused. "What are you talking about? How could you know that?"

"Because one of Cipher's members came to Melemele and tried to kidnap Professor Burnet." Moon explained. "I managed to take him down and he said that this whole thing is a setup! I don't know how the others are doing right now, but I know we have to help them! I…I want to help."

"…" Gladion remained silent. This was a lot to take in, but there was one thing he noticed about Moon compared to the one time he saw her before. "Your eyes are different. That said, why are you telling me this? I'm not the Gladion you…"

"I know that. But that doesn't mean I'm going to let you fly off into danger. Plus I'd never hear the end of it from the one I do know." Moon nodded. "So just trust me and follow behind me. They're ready for all of you, but me…I think I can make a difference."

"It won't matter much if you can't follow through." Gladion warned Moon. He did understand where she was coming from. If Cipher prepared for the Ultra Guardians, it only made sense they couldn't foresee that which should not have existed. But if Moon failed, she'd be nothing more than an inconvenience in the grand scheme of things.

"I know." Moon was well aware of this. "But I…I have the strength." Before the conversation could persist any further, an explosion occurred from the nearby mountain. "Ah! Just trust me, okay!" That was the last word she left him with before Braviary sped off.

[End flashback.]

.

.

Gladion waited a little bit as Moon zoomed ahead. There was a quiet sigh escaping him as he thought over what he was told. "That girl…I wonder what changed." There was no time to think about that, though. He was sick of waiting and figured enough time had passed. "C'mon, Noivern. We're not going to sit around much longer. We're a part of this too." Noivern nodded and flew off towards the mountain at high speeds.

.

.

Ash was the first one to make a move. With his hand extended, he commanded Lycanroc to attack first. "Lycanroc, use Stone Edge!" Lycanroc howled as its eyes turned red and slammed its paws onto the ground, causing numerous azure stones to pop up from the ground in a straight line towards Nascour's Mega Metagross.

"Meteor Mash." Nascour commanded. It was a simple action but he intended to showcase the difference in their power. Metagross barreled forward with extreme intensity, breaking through the Stone Edge while aiming to collide against Lycanroc for super effective damage.

"Watch it!" Ash shouted, and Lycanroc narrowly managed to evade it.

"Bullet Punch." Metagross pivoted on a dime, slamming one of its four fists into Zoroark, sending it flying back from the impact.

"Hey, what's your deal!?" Elizabeth's brow twitched in anger. "Night Daze!" Recovering from the strong Bullet Punch, Zoroark slammed its hands onto the ground, creating a shockwave of darkness that struck Metagross, forcing it backwards only slightly. Damage was done, and even though it was effective, it was difficult to discern how much. "At the very least, I know it felt that."

"Use Bite!" Lycanroc rushed forward, leaping into the air to bring its jaws down onto one of Metagross' arms. It did manage to latch on with an ironclad grip and Metagross recoiled only slightly.

"Meteor Mash." And then, Metagross brought up one of its free arms, slugging Lycanroc in the face! Meteor Mash also had the added effect of increasing the user's Attack by a single stage, meaning that Metagross' strength was even more potent now. But…

Just as that fist connected, Ash shouted at the top of his lungs. "Counter!" The horn on Lycanroc's head shone a vibrant orange hue. Just as it was struck in the face, it retaliated with twice the power, using its horn to strike back! Counter struck Metagross in the face, the redoubled power sending the Mega Pokémon into the wall! "Got it!"

"Not bad!" Elizabeth grinned! But as the dust cloud around Metagross settled, the steel type was still standing. "And of course it's still active. Just as persistent as before! Focus Blast!" Zoroark cupped its hands together, creating a condensed sphere of energy that it then shot forward.

"Catch it." Nascour demanded. Metacross's four arms caught the sphere with ease, not even sliding backwards. "Now, Meteor Mash." Once again, Metagross charged forward, carrying the Focus Blast as it made a beeline straight towards Zoroark!

"That's not good…!" Elizabeth gulped. "Use…!" Before she could usher the command, Metagross slammed into Zoroark, the resulting collision creating an explosion that slammed Zoroark into a wall. "Zoroark!" Zoroark was heavily damaged, but it wasn't out of the game just yet. "Wow, that's bad…"

"Accelrock!" Ash shouted. Lycanroc suddenly sped forward then leapt onto the nearby wall, using this to lunge forward and strike Metagross from various angles! With speed and terrain on their side, Ash intended to keep Metagross pinned down.

"Zen Headbutt!" Nascour didn't even wait, for he figured it all out in mere seconds. Metagross' body gave off strange kinetic energy as it clashed with Accelrock. It was a fierce stalemate before Lycanroc was overpowered and nearly crushed into the ground.

"Lycanroc! Are you okay!?" Ash asked. Lycanroc was bruised but it still stood. "Wow, that Metagross is strong all right." This did pose an issue.

"It would be bad if we didn't beat him." Elizabeth said. Last time, Cynthia was the one who bailed them out when Nascour was an issue. She wasn't here right now, so they needed to do this themselves.

"Guess there's no choice." Ash said while placing the Lycanium-Z into his Z-Ring. "I doubt he's going to let me use the Z-move…"

Elizabeth let out a sigh. She knew where this was going. "I have to buy you a few seconds to do that little dance, don't I?"

"He's right." Nascour said while crossing his arms. "You're welcome to try, but unlike the others, I won't allow you to walk over me so easily. I can promise you that you will try and fail so long as I stand before you."

.

.

"I'd give you a chance to kneel, but you've already wasted it. So I'm going to enjoy stepping all over the remains of your pride." Venus said while flipping her hair. Ninjask and Steelix and were an unlikely combination for someone like Venus, but she knew how to make it work. "Steelix, Flash Cannon! Ninjask, Air Slash!" Steelix reared its head back, releasing a potent blast of sliver energy from its mouth, while Ninjask flapped its wings, creating several slices of wind that travelled towards Gallade and Salamance.

"Psycho Cut!" Marcus shouted.

"Fire Blast!" Grace exclaimed. Gallade and Salamance released their respective attacks, all four meeting and exploding once they met. This created a thick cloud of black smoke that filled the area. The two then nodded to each other, silently agreeing on which targets to take out. "Dragon Rush!" Grace followed up, Salamance flying through the smoke to slam its body into Steelix's. It was a direct hit, but Steelix's bulky defenses prevented it from falling over.

"Night Slash!" Gallade's bladed arms lit up in a violent hue as it leapt towards Ninjask to slash at it.

"You two think you're so clever! But clearly you've forgotten my greatness! Steelix, Stone Edge! Ninjask, Aerial Ace!" Venus huffed these commands out. Steelix summoned numerous stones around its body, firing them all at Salamance who had no choice but to avoid them. It was at a bit of a disadvantage since it only had so much room to fly. As for Ninjask, it clashed with Gallade's Night Slash, the two entering a deadlock. They then broke off and started swinging at each other, Gallade's arms clashing with Ninjask's talons. Ninjask did have the speed advantage, so it was running circles around Gallade and landing numerous hits, much better compared to the occasional stray hit Gallade was landing.

"Damn!" Marcus grunted. Ninjask was just too fast thanks to its Speed Boost.

Grace realized that Marcus was having trouble. It was hard not to with that Ninjask being an issue they needed to get rid of. "Iron Tail!"

"Iron Tail!" Venus also exclaimed. She wasn't letting Salamance go anywhere. Salamance and Steelix both swung their tails at each other, a shockwave booming out from the sheer power the two had. It caused the base to shake and Venus to grin slightly. "Is this too much for you to handle? Stone Edge once more!" Steelix then returned to being on the offensive once more, pelting Salamance with numerous stones.

"Kch…" Grace grit her teeth. "Hang in there, Salamance! We'll have an opening soon!"

Marcus took a glance at the current state of the battlefield. It wasn't going well for them, but he had the perfect reversal in mind. "Vacuum Wave!" Gallade swung its arm in such a manner that it created another vortex but it wasn't meant for Ninjask! It pulled in the Stone Edge Steelix was using and then proceeded to pelt Ninjask with them instead. "Gotcha!"

"What!?" Venus gasped.

"Close Combat!" Gallade lunged towards the stunned Ninjask, assaulting it with a flurry of high speed punches and kicks. The final roundhouse kick sent it flying into Steelix. "Now!"

"Fire Blast!" Salamance wasted no time, releasing a gigantic blast of flame that consumed Steelix and Ninjask. While they managed to do some heavy damage, they both knew this battle wasn't over yet. Grace and Marcus used this chance to pull out their keystones and pressed them, calling upon the power of Mega Evolution. "Salamance!"

"Gallade!"

"Let's do this! Respond to my heart and surpass Evolution! Become stronger and Mega Evolve!" As the two exclaimed this together, a bright rainbow light emerged from their Keystones and resonated with the Megastones, causing both Salamance and Gallade to emerge in their Mega forms.

Just as they expected, Ninjask and Steelix emerged from their combination damaged, but not taken down. Venus flipped her hair once more, pulling out her own Keystone. "If this is what we're doing, then allow me! Steelix, respond to my beauty and surpass evolution! Mega Evolve!" And just like the others before it, Steelix Mega Evolved, growing in both size and power. At the same time, a red aura flared around Ninjask as it entered Reverse Mode, greatly increasing its power at the cost of inevitable recoil. "It's cute that you two are trying so hard. But believe me when I say that you won't be leaving this mountain."

.

.

"So, tell me…" Miror B said while dancing in place as usual. "Members of the International Police…if you were so aware of our groovy operation, what would be your next step? You see all the Shadow Pokémon here in this room. So how exactly did you plan on transporting all of them with these few numbers?"

"Well…" Rui began, but Lovrina held her arm out to stop her.

"Don't answer that question. That's, like, the oldest trick in the book!" Lovrina stuck her tongue out at Miror B. She wouldn't allow him to pull such an easy trick on them. "All you need to know is that we have our ways! We _are_ the International Police after all."

"That question was 100% a trap-roto!" Rotom said, as if that wasn't obvious already.

Miror B only grinned in response to what Lovrina had said. "I see. Well, you are as quick as a Vine Whip. I was hoping to learn about the secret plan of the police, but I suppose that's a beat we can dance to when the song plays. Now, let's get this party started! Emboar, hit em fast and hard with a Flame Charge!" Emboar cloaked itself in a veil of flames before charging forward, far faster than Lovrina, Rui, or Rotom could predict! The three Pokémon narrowly evaded such a high speed charge and stared with sweat drops.

"Whoa…that was way faster than I was prepared for." Rui gulped before shaking her head. "Espeon, use Swift!" Espeon jumped into the air and swung its tail forward, releasing an array of high speed golden stars at Emboar. They all struck, causing the fire type to stagger backwards.

"Ninetails, Ice Beam!" Lovrina followed up immediately. Her Alolan Ninetails unleashed a potent Ice Beam that struck the staggering Emboar! It was a direct hit that flowed perfectly with Espeon's Swift.

"Oh, not bad! But let's see how this tune treats you! Shadow Storm!" Emboar shook off the two hits and let out a loud cry. The large Pokémon then swung its arms forward, creating a pitch black vortex composed of Shadow Power, similar to Gust, but far stronger! One vortex became two and they consumed Ninetails and Espeon. The two were able to hold their ground but there was no denying how much damage they were taking.

"Hang in there, Espeon!" Rui pleaded.

"You too, Ninetails!" Lovrina said.

"Watch out, he's going to attack again!" Rotom warned and it was right.

"Flame Charge!" While Espeon and Ninetails were pinned down by the Shadow Storm, flames erupted around Emboar once more and it sped forward at even greater speeds, slamming right into Ninetails! Ninetails then slammed into Espeon and the two stumbled along the ground, which gave Miror B the opportune time to attack. "Blast Burn!"

"Danger danger!" Rotom was now panicking for Rui and Lovrina.

Emboar slammed its fist into the ground, creating a gigantic eruption of flame that consumed Ninetails and Espeon! It was an extremely powerful fire type attack that heavily damaged the two Pokémon. Naturally, after using such a move, Emboar had to suffer the consequences of having to recharge, but Miror B was relatively pleased. "OH! Now THAT is a step!"

"A misstep…" Rui said as Espeon stood up, though heavily burned from the Blast Burn. "Espeon, use Psychic!" Espeon's eyes lit up in a neon blue hue, having a firm grasp of Emboar's helpless body and tossed it into a nearby wall.

"And Moonblast!" Emboar didn't have the chance to recover before Ninetails fired off a bright pink beam at its body, pushing it further into the wall. Emboar cried out as it was definitely feeling the damage from those two consecutive attacks. "Yeah, how was that duet!?"

"I liked it!" Miror B admitted. "You two dance wonderfully! I'm very impressed, bravo, bravo!"

"Ew…I wasn't expecting him to praise us for it." Lovrina shuddered.

"But it doesn't matter. We'll end this quick!" Rui said.

"End it?" Miror B tilted his head curiously. "Now I see the type of person you are. You're the type of person who skips to their favorite part of the song without appreciating the buildup to it, is that right?"

Rui's blue eyes widened in confusion and shock. "H-Huh!? How did you…!?"

"He was right!? That's criminal!" Lovrina looked at Rui in shock.

"How could you not appreciate the buildup-roto!?" Rotom asked. Suddenly Rui looked like the bad guy in the room.

"That's not the point!" Rui flailed her arms around. "What is he talking about!?"

There was a sinister glint in Miror B's eyes. "It's simple, my dear Rui. You want to end things, but this song has only just begun. We haven't even gotten to the climax yet~"

.

.

"Prepare for trouble and make it double?" Ferma had to take this in before bursting out into laughter. "That's so corny! Ahahaha! To think I was about to take you seriously for a second!"

"Are you making fun of our iconic motto!?" Jessie said with a comical tick mark on her forehead.

"Yes." Ferma said, still laughing. These were her enemies?! They were far more entertaining than what she could have gotten. "Hoo. Okay. That was a good laugh. Not sorry about that."

"Grrr…!" Jessie had enough of this disrespect! "Mimikyu, destroy her!" She pointed forward and expected Mimikyu to lunge with the same murderous intent. Instead, Mimikyu crawled forward, looked at Jessie, and then proceeded to crawl away. "Eh?"

"Ah…" James blinked.

"It says that it was promised a Pikachu and it doesn't see a Pikachu." Meowth translated Mimikyu's words. "And because it doesn't see a Pikachu, it doesn't want to fight."

"Seriously!? I'll get you your Pikachu, just work with me here!" Jessie pleaded, but Mimikyu already started wandering off. It was seriously killing the vibe they had going!

"Wait. Pause. That Meowth is actually talking?" Ferna's eyes widened and she got an idea. "We should use you as our mascot!"

"Absolutely not!" Meowth objected to the idea. "I'm Team Rocket's mascot!"

"Shame. You'd be spared getting destroyed." Shrugging, Ferma pointed her index forward. "Ambipom, use Double Hit!" Ambipom jumped forward with its two tails, landing right in front of Meowth. Before Meowth had the chance to act, it was struck twice by Amibpom's tails, the second strike sending Meowth spiraling into the ground.

"Meowth!" Jessie and James exclaimed in worry. Now they were angry.

"Mareanie, use Spike Cannon!" James commanded. Mareanie jumped from James arms and spun around, releasing a volley of sharp spikes towards Yanmega and Ambipom. The two were able to avoid the Spike Cannon, but it came dangerously close to hitting Reath and she did not appreciate that.

"Hey, watch the hair! Yanmega, use Quick Attack!" Yanmega was already a fast Pokémon, so it was moving even faster to land a quick strike against Mareanie! It moved faster than the eye could see and Mareanie hit the floor, only to rebound after a strike. "Follow up with Acrobaticts!" While Mareanie was recovering, Yanmega moved in with swift, acrobatic movements, building up momentum to slam into its foe!

"Wobbufett, use Counter!" Jessie pushed Wobbufett in Yanmega's path. Wobbufett saluted as a red aura appeared around its body just as Yanmega crashed into it! Wobbufett held its ground against the Shadow Pokémon before ultimately pushing it backwards.

"Spike Cannon!" James commanded once more. With Yanmega on the back foot, Mareanie released another volley of spikes towards the Shadow Pokémon! This time it was a direct hit and Yanmega was pelted relentlessly with spikes.

"Gh! Ambipom, use Focus Blast!" Ferma shouted. Ambipom did just that, releasing a Focus Blast towards Mareanie.

"Mirror Coat!" But Jessie wasn't going to let that happen! Once again, Wobbufett stood in front of Mareanie, this time giving off a silver glow as it reflected the Focus Blast!

"Double Hit!" Ferma smirked. Just as the Focus Blast was coming back to strike, Ambipom spun around, slamming its tail into the sphere, thus sending it back to Wobbufett! It reflected it once more and the process continued again, only this time, Ambipom came out the winner as Focus Blast exploded upon Wobbufett, sending it backwards.

By this time, Meowth recovered and lunged at Ambipom with his claws extended. "Gettin' a cheap show on me!? Well how do you like these Fury Swipes!?" Meowth violently clawed at Ambipom, who stepped back several times to avoid his attacks. Ambipom then saw an opening and swung a tail at Meowth, but he slid under it, spun around, and raked his claws down against Ambipom's face. "How about Slash!?" That was a direct hit and Ambipom did not appreciate that very much, nor did Reath!

"Low Sweep!" Ferma shouted. Before Meowth could feel too good about his efforts, Ambipom spun around, aiming low in striking Meowth's leg! The force behind the kick not would not only hamper Meowth's speed, but it also knocked him into Mimikyu. "Hmph Now, Shadow Hold!" Yanmega let out a strange aura that spread out to Wobbufett and Mareanie, keeping them locked in place.

"Oof…" Meowth winced. His leg was bruised from the Low Sweep.

"…" Mimikyu turned around slowly, noticing Meowth's injury. At that moment a dark purple aura violently flared around its body and its eyes gleamed with murderous intent.

"What!? That's a Shadow Pokémon!? That's unfair!" Jessie shouted while trying to pry Wobbufett from its forced position.

"You're in our turf. Did you think you'd waltz in here and get a free fight? Pssh." Ferma snickered before motioning Yanmega to end this. "Acrobatics." Just like before, Yanmega began building up momentum and it planned to use this to defeat the targets in front of it. However, just before it could, Mimikyu was in front of it, slamming a Wood Hammer down to crush it into the ground. "Wh!?"

"Mimikyu!" Jessie's eyes lit up in excitement. "It took you long enough! I'll get you your Pikachu if you just listen to us, okay! Now use Play Rough!" Mimikyu would listen for now, if only because Ferma sought to harm those it considered family. Before Ambipom had the chance to act, Mimikyu rushed it down and started to attack it. A comical cloud of smoke appeared but what occurred was anything but humorous. Mimikyu was beating the tar out of Ambipom before one final smack of its tail knocked it away.

"We're not just gonna sit back and take that! Fire back with Thunder Punch!" Though dazed, Ambipom would not let that embarrassment stand. It lunged at Mimikyu with a fist charged with lightning and swung…only for it to miss due to Mimikyu's disguise. "Huh!?" And Mimikyu then smacked it away with a Wood Hammer out of retaliation.

"Finish it with Poison Sting!" James grinned and Mareanie happily did so, leaping forward to bombard the weakened Ambipom with poisoned barbs! The Poison Sting was a direct hit and Amibpom landed on its back, defeated.

"Ambipom…!" Reath gasped. "Oh that is it…!?"

"Deciding to take us seriously now?" James said while crossing his arms, giving a confident smirk. Reath and Cipher would rue the day they disrespected Team Rocket.

"It's not too late to give up." Jessie leaned forward, smirking condescendingly.

"Team Rocket…" Ferma bit her lower lip. Despite looking like fools, they were actually somewhat threatening. "This could be a problem if not dealt with properly. Unfortunately for you all, you found one of the worst opponents!" With that self-confidence boosts, Ferma smirked once more. "Shadow Hold!" Just as before, Yanmega released a shadowy mist that took hold of Meowth, Mimikyu, Wobbufett, and Mareanie.

"Hey! This ain't fair! Let us go!" Meowth shouted.

"Oh, gladly. Shadow Rave!" Yanmega flapped its wings and a purple trail started to travel from the ground towards Team Rocket's Pokémon. This purple trail erupted in the form of shadow spikes that struck the four aforementioned Pokémon, dealing heavy damage to all of them, Mimikyu included. "Once more!" And another Shadow Rave struck just as Shadow Hold ended; giving Ferma the advantage she needed to turn this around.

"Guys! Are you okay!?" Jessie and James asked their team with the utmost concern. They were down, but not out!

Ferma placed her hands on her hips. "What was that about preparing for trouble? Seems like you lot were the ones who weren't ready. Then again, you did march right into our headquarters so brazenly."

"Our words still stand!" James declared. "If you think this is enough to send Team Rocket packing, then you clearly don't know us very well!

"Exactly!" Meowth said while standing up. "This is nothin' compared to what those twerps can dish out!"

"You'll have to do far better if you want to send us blasting off." Jessie said while holding up Team Rocket's shared Z-ring. Attached to it was the Mimikium-z.

"We're Team Rocket and we don't give up!" All at once, Jessie, James, and Meowth started to do the pose for a Fairy Type Z-move. It was beginning to resonate with their moves and the Z-power was flooding into Mimikyu.

"Wait, you have a Z-ring too!? Does everyone in this backwater region have one!?" Ferma groaned but she would not be deterred. "Don't let them get it off! Use Shadow Rave!" Yanmega fired off another Shadow Rave, but the one who took the hit for the team was Mareanie, tanking the blow while hitting the ground. "Ugh! Acrobatics!" She was desperate to not let them get this off! Yanmega flew forward, only to be intercepted by Wobbufett's Counter! The two entered another stalemate, but this one was a draw as they both flew back. While the result of that clash was a draw, Wobbufett was the true winner, since it sought only to buy time.

"_**LET'S SNUGGLE FOREVER!"**_ Team Rocket finished the Z-move pose and that left it all up to Mimikyu. Mimikyu jumped into the air, the bottom piece of its costume suddenly expanding as it landed on top of Yanmega and swallowed it whole. Yanmega was in a place no living creature should ever be: inside of Mimikyu. There was a lot of rustling as Mimikyu's true form was demonlishing Yanmega within the costume. It was so brutal that Team Rocket just couldn't look, but when Mimikyu hopped away, Yanmega was both defeated and most likely scarred for life…which was saying something considering it was a Shadow Pokémon.

"W-What is that thing!? It's a freak of nature!" Ferma said as her face paled. She only saw a glimpse of Mimikyu's eyes but that was enough to instill fear into her.

"Someone's not looking so prepared." Jessie said. "But that's to be expected when facing off against Team Rocket." Mimikyu slowly inched forward towards Reath.

"It's saying that it would be more than happy to give you another look." Meowth translated.

Ferma shook her head and returned Yanmega and Ambipom. "G-Gahh…! I wonder if Reath had better luck than meeeeeeeee!" And she dipped, because she was not about that life! Team Rocket won and she had to make sure Ein was aware of this!

As for Team Rocket? A decisive victory on their part! They all high fived after a hard fought victory. "And that's why you don't mess with Team Rocket!" The trio said, celebrating the victory with their Pokémon! That was one member of Cipher they forced to retreat! Now for the rest!

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Next Time: The Trap.


	40. Chapter 40: The Trap

Ein was monitoring the happenings within the Cipher HQ. There were some things he couldn't see, such as the whereabouts of Lillie's group, along with Rui and Lovrina, and Scott as well. Otherwise, as far as the scientist was concerned, things were progressing smoothly. Even though several members of Cipher had taken losses thus far, it was all within Ein's parameters. "Things are going well. It's about time I activate the trap…"

At that moment, Trudly came bursting through the door, panting heavily since he made a mad dash to Ein's office. "E-Ein! We have a problem!"

Trudly's arrival caused Ein to turn, glaring through his shades. "Did you lose, Trudly? Shadow Coalossal should have easily been able to take care of the two you were assigned. You can't be that incompetent."

"But I was winning!" Trudly tripped over his words. The news he had was so unbelievable, he was failing to convey it properly. "B-But then I was ambushed!"

"Ambushed? By who? That Gladion kid? You should have known he was coming." The more Trudly spoke, the more irritated Ein became. They had a plan and everything that happened so far was planned!

"N-No! It was…!" Before Trudly could finish, he was instantly frozen over and fell to the ground as a popsicle! Scott walked from behind the door, hands in his pockets and his Galaraian Darmanitan at his side.

"Following him proved to be useful. I admit I was a little lost until I saw him sprinting by." Scott said, running a hand through his hair. "I never imagined that he would lead me right to the head of this operation. Long time no see."

"The psychic…" Ein sighed. "I should've known you would be one to find your way to me…not that it really matters. The point is that I gathered all of you here in one location. In that regard, I'd happily pat myself on the back for that one."

"Someone has to." Scott shrugged. "But we're here to put an end to this little game we're playing. We have more important matters to deal with and to be frank, you're being a nuisance."

"Not at all. This has been a long time coming. Alola will be the perfect rebirth for the Shadow Pokémon and Trainer project. I've already found some suitable test subjects I can't wait to try!" Ein responded with a grin, calling out his Alakazam…but not to fight. The psychic type instead walked to a specific area of the room, inside of a machine. "You're the one with premonition, correct? Then you should have realized that the moment you all stepped onto this mountain, you lost. We've prepared for every single one of you. The little group you had in Kalos, all the way to that brat's friends in Alola. There's nothing we don't know about you or your abilities!"

"Is that a fact?" Scott lifted a brow, but kept his guard up. He wasn't sure what Ein was trying to pull. "Ice Punch!" Darmantian rushed forward to try and punch Alakazam, but was pushed backwards from a barrier the machine gave off. "I thought so. Regardless…I don't think your plan is as full proof as you might think."

"They always say that." Ein adjusted his shades, a red button popping up on his desk. "But since you were the first one to greet me, I'll allow you to watch the trap we've set up unfold before your very eyes! You'll soon understand the full weight of my words!" When Ein pressed the button, the Z-ring he had obtained through dubious means appeared in front of Alakazam, releasing energy that discharged through the entire machine, and then, the entirety of Mt. Lanakila!

"What…?" Scott took a step back as this strange magnetic wave traversed the entire mountain. It didn't affect him, which was odd. "I have many questions, but my first priority is to shut that machine down..!"

"You have questions?" Ein grinned as he tossed another Pokeball into the air, calling forth his Huntail. "I'll gladly answer them. But as it stands, you cannot stop that machine and neither can I. It's out of our hands, but its control belongs to someone else now. To answer your question, however…your friends so deep into Alola culture will suffer the price of its power."

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Nanu and Acerola arrived on the mountain, where Takeba and Reath were. They were dressed for the snow and Nanu just sighed as Takeba pushed Reath over to him. "So…this is where they are, huh?" The officer looked at the building not too far away. "Man…first off, you're under arrest."

"Arrested by a lazy cop. Wonderful." Reath sighed as Nanu cuffed her. "I wanna go back to jail!"

"Should've thought of that before doing all those bad deeds!" Acerola said while swaying back and forth. "And now Uncle's gonna lock you up and throw away the key!"

"He seems waaaaay too lazy for that." Takeba lifted a finger up. "Seems like the type to lose the key and not care enough to look for it."

'Not wrong…" Nanu shrugged. "That said, I know I can't stop here. If Cipher's causing trouble on this island, it's for the best that I get involved and help put a stop to it. I can't have you kids doing all the work. I am still a Kahuna."

"We'll regroup with the others inside then!" Takeba clasped her hands together. At that moment, her Z-ring started to shine brightly, much to her confusion. "Huh? But I just used my Z-move, I shouldn't be able to…" And then the Z-ring started to tighten around her wrist, causing her extreme discomfort. "W-What's…? Gah…!" Sparks emitted from the Z-ring as the device itself actively began to shock her. "GAAAAAH!"

"H-Hey! What's going on?!" Acerola's eyes widened as she rushed over to Takeba, trying to pry the Z-ring off. "Are you okay? It won't come off…!"

"It hurts…what's going on…?" Takeba was trying to fight through the pain…and in the next instant, she vanished.

"Huh!?" Acerola looked around confusedly. "What just happened?"

Nanu turned to Reath immediately, his usual aloof expression shifting into something more serious. "What's going on?"

Reath just held a coy smile. "Well…it seems like the trap we've been waiting to spring has finally happened! This looks like the beginning of the end! But I don't wanna watch it behind bars!"

"Quiet." Nanu snapped. It happened so suddenly that it startled Reath and she went quiet. "Acerola."

"I'll watch her!" Acerola said with a firm nod. "You go help them!"

That was all Nanu needed to hear. The Island Kahuna of Ula'Ula had no choice but to get involved in this fight now. "Nothing but trouble, but this trouble won't be on _my_ island, that's for sure."

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Lana collapsed in the corridor, her Z-ring overflowing with energy. The girl was on her side, grimacing and crying out in pain as her Z-ring betrayed her! "I-It hurts…!"

"Lana! What's wrong!?" Mallow crouched down next to her friend. She was trying to unhook the Z-ring from her wrist, but it wasn't working! "What's happening?" Why was Lana suffering like this? And why wasn't she going through the same thing? She had her Z-ring on too! "Hold, we'll get it off!" Mallow shouted, Tsareena and Shaymin attempting to pry the band off Lana, but to no avail.

"Mallow…you have to…" Lana tried to speak, but before she could, she too vanished, leaving Mallow and her Pokémon alone.

"Lana!? Lana!" Mallow frantically exclaimed. Her Z-ring sparked a little bit, but unlike Lana's, it did not betray her.

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Kiawe had Gorigan pinned down…at least for the moment. That was until his Z-ring started acting like all the others, causing him to fall to a knee and grip his wrist in agony. "W-What the!?" Turtonator turned its attention away from Gorigan to Kiawe, obviously concerned for its trainer's wellbeing.

"Ah…took you long enough." Gorigan could finally breathe a sigh of relief. "Sorry kid…but despite the fact you won, you all lost at this very moment."

"W-what are you talking about? What's going on!?" Kiawe asked while glaring up at Gorigan. Turtonator was standing in front of its trainer, prepared to fight once again if it had to, despite its injured condition.

"I'll let you in on a secret. You probably already figured out this was a trap, yeah?" Gorigan began. "Well, it all had to do with those Z-rings of yours. We knew we had no real way of stopping you from using them if we pushed you al hard enough…so we just decided to let you use them. Even if we lost the fight, it would end in our favor."

"I don't…get it…" Kiawe struggled to speak.

"I'll put it in simple terms then," Gorigan said while starting to walk off. "You and your friends who embrace Z-moves and Alolas culture…are gonna pay the price for it." And right after he said that, Kiawe and Turtonator vanished like those before them.

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"Ow ow ow ow!" Jessie was the one suffering. James, Meowth, Mimikyu, Mareanie, and Wobbufett were all trying to pry the Z-ring off her wrist. Despite their combined efforts, it was not coming off! "I'm not sure what's worse, your efforts or this thing shocking me!"

"We're tryin' our best, but it ain't comin' off!" Meowth proclaimed.

"Cut my arm off then, this is so painful!" Jessie whined.

"That's not even plan Z!" James cried. But the efforts of Team Rocket all came to a halt when Jessie and Mimikyu just vanished, causing the others to fall to the ground. "Jessie!?"

"Mimikyu!? Where'd ya go!?" Meowth frantically looked around in a panic but…they were gone!

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"Aaaaah!" Lillie and Sophocles had fallen to the ground, just as everyone else before them. Moon and Snowy were frantic as they didn't understand what was happening.

"Lillie!? Sophocles!? Are you two okay!? What's wrong!?" Moon simply didn't understand the situation. Their Z-rings were causing them pain somehow? Naturally she attempted to pull Lillie's Z-ring off, but it was no use, and the same was with Sophocles. "T-They're stuck! I can't get them off!" As for Moon's Z-ring, it sparked a little bit, but didn't do any harm to her.

"It hurts…" Lillie whined.

"They must be…using Z-power against us somehow…" Sophocles surmised. But with no means of knowing how this was being done, he was only working with a hypothesis. Unfortunately, there was nothing anyone could do as he, Lillie, and Snowy vanished.

"No!" Moon cried out while reaching for Lillie, but just like before, she was too late. Moon was shaken as she had a brief memory return of something similar, it stunned her for a moment. But she then shook it off, refusing to be deterred after coming this far. "They can't be too far! I don't know what's happening or how it did, but I won't let things go badly! I have to make a difference while I'm here!"

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Elizabeth was tasked with buying Ash just a few seconds to use a Z-move. Luckily she wasn't alone since Pikachu opted to help out, since Lycanroc would temporarily be busy synchronizing with Ash. "Okay, Pikachu…we can buy like 5 seconds, right?" Elizabeth was a little hesitant since this was Nascour.

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded and led the charge. It was better if they approached instead of letting Nascour come to them!

"Meteor Mash." Nascour commanded. Metagross began to barrel forward at full speed in a straight line! Pikachu was in its path, but it clearly intended to break through the mouse and strike Lycanroc.

"Pika…!" Pikachu recognized what Nascour was planning. The mouse jumped into the air and swung its tail forward, making use of Electro Web. A large net of electricity was released in front of Metagross to stop it in its tracks! It worked for a moment! Metagross slammed into the net, the electrical charge dealing damage while also halting its momentum! But Metagross was determined to break through and pushed through the net, the electrical webbing rapidly falling apart.

"Focus Blast!" Elizabeth shouted. Zoroark fired off a Focus Blast that hit Metagross directly in an effort to stop its momentum. There was smoke surrounding Metagross, clouding it and Nascour's view for a moment until it cleared. Unfortunately, despite the direct hit, Metagross kept going and broke through the net! "It's still coming!? Pikachu, we gotta stop it!"

"Just a little longer you guys!" Ash said, stomping his feet on the ground. It only took a few seconds to use a Z-move, but with a Mega Metagross intent on rushing you down, it felt like an eternity!

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded and continued to rush forward, using Iron Tail! The mouse swung its tail at Metagross to clash with one of its four arms.

"Shadow Claw!" Zoroark followed suit to clash with Metagross. Unfortunately for the two of them, Metagross broke through, now continuing towards Ash and Lycanroc!

"It's over." Nascour stated with a smirk.

But Elizabeth returned the smirk in kind. The Pikachu and Zoroark that had been cast aside…were nothing more than illusions. Thanks to the smoke from Focus Blast serving as cover, it gave Zoroark the perfect chance to work its magic! "Yeah, for you! Night Daze!" The real Zoroark appeared to Metagross's left, firing off a beam of darkness that struck the Mega directly!

As for Pikachu, he was above Metagross, patting his cheeks as lightning sparked around his body! "PikaCHUUUU!" A fierce Thunderbolt landed along with Night Daze! The combination of the two attacks completely stopped Metagross and even pushed it backwards.

"What!?" Nascour grit his teeth. How could this happen!?

And with that, Ash was ready! The pose was finished and the Z-power flooded into Lycanroc. "Thanks guys! Now leave the rest to us! Lycanroc, go! _**SPLINTERED STORM SHARDS!**_" Lycanroc howled as a large rock pillar formed under its feet, taking it as high as it could go without hitting the ceiling. This mighty roar summoned numerous stones that surrounded Metagross and Lyancroc. The Dusk variant flew forward to collide against Metagross, all while the stones converged on that single point, resulting in a strong explosion! Lycanroc jumped back after the powerful Z-move was used, and they all waited cautiously to see what the result was…

Metagross was still active, albeit heavily damaged from such an attack. "That was close, I admit…" Nascour really didn't want to admit that. That was nearly the end of Metagross right there, but it managed to endure. "But…"

"It's still moving?!" Elizabeth grit her teeth. "But it's hurt, we can finish it off!"

"Yeah!" Ash wasn't deterred. All they needed was one final push and…! "Ngh…!?" And then, Ash started to suffer the same as the others who used a Z-move. His hand gripped his wrist as his Z-ring started to go crazy! "Ow! What…!?"

"But it's too late. That was all we really needed." Nascour said calmly. "As much as I hate leaving matters unfinished, you've already fallen into our trap."

"Trap!?" Elizabeth was trying to help Ash, but it obviously didn't work. "What did you do!?"

"Use the power of Alola against you all." Nascour stated. Before Ash could say anything else, he and Lycanroc vanished, just leaving Elizabeth and Pikachu in the room with Nascour. "I don't like leaving things unfinished, but this battle already has a clear outcome."

"Wh!? No the hell it doesn't!" Elizabeth growled. "Give me my friend back right now."

"No." Nascour pointed up. Metagross used Bullet Punch on the ceiling, causing it to cave in! The debris started to fall on top of Elizabeth, Zoroark, and Pikachu! While they were busy fending for their lives, Nascour returned Metagross and started to walk off. His work was done here.

"Hey! Come back…!" Elizabeth grunted, but she had to focus on surviving first! Having the ceiling collapse on her? A very unfair trick, but there wasn't a lot she could do but worry about herself first! "Damn it!"

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In Scott's point of view, as soon as Ein pressed the button, everything went downhill. He could see all of his friends in pain and being whisked away somewhere unknown! He recognized the action of Teleprot when he saw it, but he hadn't the slightest idea how this worked with Ein's plans. "What have you done!?"

"Hahaha!" Ein chuckled with a victorious smile. "Anyone who has used a Z-move on Mt. Lanakila has fallen into my trap! With the Z-ring I've procured, and Alakazam's abilities, I've whisked them all away to a certain room within this base. With them incapacitated, it'll make this research go a lot smoother. The only thing I need now…is for you to get out of my way."

Scott glanced at the screen once more. Marcus and Grace, Elizabeth, and Mallow were the only ones he could see. He had no clue about Lovrina or Rui, but he had to assume they were okay…plus, if he was right, they still had 2 more people they could rely on! "You haven't won yet." Before Ein could look over who was remaining, Darmantian punched the screen, thus knocking out the reception!

"Tch! Hiding anyone who happened to remain doesn't save them!" Ein spat. "Now, psychic, I need you to disappear!"

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"Finally here…" Gladion said as he was about to land on Mt. Lanakila. But just before Noivern landed, his gaze went up as he felt a strange magnetic pulse affect his Z-ring. It sparked for a moment, but nothing happened. "Huh?" Noivern then made a noise, gesturing for Gladion to look further up the mountain. What did Noivern see? A strange device just above the base! It was angled down at the building. "What is that? Is that the reason my Z-ring was acting up? Let's check it out." Patting Noivern, Gladion silently commanded for it to fly closer to the device to potentially destroy it. Just before he got too close…numerous stones nearly struck Noivern down, forcing it to back away. "…!?"

Ardos was riding his Aerodactyl and stopped Gladion in his tracks. The man didn't care much at all for small talk, but he was making his objective clear. "I cannot allow you to touch that machine. If you know what's good for you, you'll leave and never return. If you don't, I promise that you won't leave this mountain alive."

Gladion held a glare towards the man who suddenly appeared. "If I had to guess, this machine is probably important to whatever you have planned, right?" Gladion asked. "Then that means I can kill two birds with one stone."

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Next Time: Against The Clock.


	41. Chapter 41: Against The Clock

Despite Ardos' calm demeanor, he was shocked to see that Gladion was here, now of all times. The Cipher admin stared at the last Ultra Guardian to join the fray. "What are _you_ doing here?"Ardos questioned. Gladion should have already been here, not just arriving.

"You sound surprised." Gladion retorted. "Was I supposed to arrive a little earlier, to fall for your trap?" The young man questioned. The fact that he mentioned a trap at all had Ardos surprised.

Something about this situation was very wrong. Ardos' lips curved down into a scowl. How did Gladion know!? "How do you know about that?" There was no point in trying to hide it if he already knew.

"I ran into someone on the way here. They told me what I needed to know." Gladion responded, not giving away Moon's identity because it was clear that Cipher didn't know about her, which was key for the tides to turn. "It was a clever idea, too bad that it didn't work the way you wanted."

"Someone…told you…?" Behind his shades, Ardos' brow was twitching. Was there a leak of information!? There couldn't have been, he knew for a fact no one leaked their plan, so just what was going on here?! Taking a deep breath, Ardos exhaled and regained his composure. This would mean nothing when he crushed Gladion. "It doesn't matter. Things will proceed smoothly when you're crushed."

"Good luck trying. Noivern, Dragon Breath!" Gladion wasn't paying Ardos any mind. Instead, his first objective was to destroy that strange device pointed at the base. Noivern released a blast towards the machine, but it was intercepted by a Stone Edge from Ardos' Aerodactyl.

"I cannot allow you to destroy that." Ardos said.

"So I was right." Gladion was testing a theory and Ardos proved it true. "If I destroyed this, then your plans would unravel. Your reaction just now told me everything I needed to know."

"…!" Ardos grit his teeth. Why were kids so persistent?

"Noivern, land!" Gladion commanded and Noivern flew higher up the mountain, with Ardos in hot pursuit. Once at the desired spot, Gladion leapt off Noivern and threw a Pokeball down. "Silvally!" From the Pokeball, Silvally emerged, and Gladion landed on its back as it landed on the ground. He then hopped off just as Ardos arrived, taking a step off his Aerodactyl so it could do battle. "This should be a good spot."

"For your demise? I agree. You'll be buried in the snow." Ardos said before pointing an arm forward. "Aerial Ace!

"Crush Claw!" Silvally roared before sprinting forward, raising a claw up as a bright right aura flared around it. Aerodactyl flew forward and the two met in a fierce clash, their claws colliding with one another. It was a deadlock, forcing the two of them to break away from each other. Aerodactyl had the aerial advantage and retreated into the skies, circling around in the air. "Air Slash!" Gladion commanded, refusing to allow Aerodactyl to escape that easily. Silvally swung its head forward, releasing numerous blades of air towards the prehistoric Pokémon.

"Stone Edge." Ardos calmly demanded. Aerodactyl used its maneuverability in the air to easily avoid the Air Slash, performing a U-turn to dive right back to the ground, slamming its talons down onto the ground, which prompted numerous azure stones to pop up, traveling towards Sivlally with the intent to slam into it!

"Air Slash!" Once again, Sivlally fired off another Air Slash, using the raw power of wind to slice through the incoming rocks before they could pose a threat to it.

"Aerial Ace!" With this opening presented, Aerodactyl flew forward at incredible speed, slashing Sivlally with its sharp claws before retreating to the air once again.

"Tch!" Gladion wasn't going to get anywhere like this. He had to up his game. "Swords Dance!" Sivlally roused itself as multiple blades appeared around its body, clanking together to signify a rise in its fighting spirit, sharply raising its Attack in the process. Gladion then pulled out a blue disk and tossed it towards Sivlally. "On this snowy mountain, the raging waters of judgement shall rain down upon you!" The Ultra Guardian exclaimed as Silvally accepted the Drive, downloading its properties to become Silvally: Water!

"Hm?" Ardos quirked a brow. "Aerial Ace once more!" This development was interesting. What a fascinating Pokémon this was! One that could change types at will? It had to become a Shadow. Aerodactyl flew down at high speed to strike Sivlally with its claws.

But this time, Gladion was prepared for it. "Multi-Attack!" Silvally lifted its claw as a watery aura surrounded it. Just as Aerodactyl attacked, Silvally beat it to the punch, clawing with what was now a Water type attack! The prehistoric Pokémon was sent flying backwards from the sheer might of the attack, the Swords Dance boost only dealing that much more damage.

"So it has an attack that changes along with its typing. Very nice." Ardos was calm despite Aerodactyl's damage. "With that, I believe I've concluded my analysis on you."

"What?" Gladion kept his guard up.

"We were aware of your unique Pokémon. I just wanted the chance to see what it was capable of myself, and now that I see how it works….I won't be defeated." Ardos then decided to assert his dominance, pulling out his Keystone to resonate with Aerodactyl's Megastone. There was a bright flash of light as Aerodactyl surpassed evolution to Mega Evolve! "Thunder Fang." Mega Aerodactyl recovered and flew even faster than before. Gladion didn't have the chance to react as the fossil's jaw was coated in lightning, which it then used to bite down on Silvally for a super effective attack. With its new ability, Tough Claws, moves that involved physical contact were powered up.

"Silvally!" Gladion said, eyes widening as Thunder Fang dealt a high amount of damage to his partner. Aerodactyl then flew back into the sky as Silvally breathed heavily, attempting to catch its breath after taking such a heavy attack. It was still standing but clearly winded.

"You fight by giving yourself an advantage over your opponent…but what if your opponent has their bases covered? What do you do then?" Ardos questioned before a malicious smirk. "I have all of Aerodactyl's weaknesses covered. Stone Edge covers ice, Thunder fang covers water…and for rock, steel, and electric? Earth Power." Aerodactyl let out a mighty cry as Mt. Lanakila began to shake!

"Watch out!" Gladion warned Silvally. The now water type started dashing to the side in a zig-zag pattern as the ground erupted under its feet, spewing heated rock in all directions! Silvally and Gladion were forced on the defensive, retreating from Earth Power until it calmed down. They were now on the back foot against a man who was clearly prepared to fight Silvally. "Tch…"

"So, what's your next move?" Ardos said with a menacing smirk, Mega Aerodactyl hovering above him intimidatingly. "No matter what option you choose, I'll be ready to count it. You won't be able to save a single one of your friends. So it doesn't matter how you found out about our trap, you'll succumb to my might in the end."

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Though the ceiling collapsed, Elizabeth, Zoroark, and Pikachu were unharmed. Why? Because Pikachu used Electro Web to create a dome over the trio's bodies, keeping them safe from the falling ceiling. Elizabeth let out a heavy sigh and relaxed as the dome faded and rubble harmlessly fell around them. "Well that sucked! Thanks, Pikachu. I owe you one."

"Pika!" Pikachu shook his head and just grinned. But the situation didn't allow them to relax just yet. They had to figure out what happened to Ash, and by proxy, the others within Cipher's base.

"You're right…" Elizabeth returned Zoroark, looking for a way out. "We have to find Ash. I feel like the others are in danger too, if they've used their Z-moves." She wasn't blind to the connection of Ash's disappearance and his Z-ring causing him pain. "I don't know how they did it, but they took Ash and Lycanroc somewhere. Considering Nascour wasn't in a hurry when he left, they have to be within the building somewhere."

Pikachu nodded in agreement. "Pika pika!" He then pointed upwards. Some of the rubble left a path up the next floor, so they weren't completely wrapped. They could move and figure out where to go from there.

"Good eye. I wonder if anyone else is around…" Elizabeth sure hoped so. Regardless, the climb began and she started to climb with Pikachu.

.

.

"Jessie! Mimikyu!" Meowth and James were calling out for Jessie. Doing so in the enemy base wasn't wise, but they were looking for their friend and it couldn't be helped. Everything happened so suddenly.

"What happened to them?" James questioned. It didn't make any sense.

"We have to find 'em! They could be anywhere." Meowth declared. They were rushing through the corridors of Cipher's base, and then they bumped into someone else who had run into them! "Oof!"

"Ouch!" Moon fell onto her butt, rubbing her head after colliding with James. "Watch it!"

"You watch it!" James said. But then the two noticed each other, pointed at one another, and shouted. "AAAHHH!"

"W-What are you doing here?!" Moon demanded to know.

"Us!? What are _you_ doing here, twerp!?" Meowth asked. "We followed the other twerps and you weren't there!"

"That's…not important." Moon glanced away. "Hey, wait a sec, aren't there usually three of you? Where's Jessie?" It was hard for her to forget their names, since they introduced themselves in such a flashy manner every time she'd encountered them thus far.

"She up and vanished, along with Mimikyu." James said. "We were here to stop Cipher and show them the power of Team Rocket! But after Jessie used her Z-move, she and Mimikyu were just gone."

"Huh? That's just like Lillie and Sophocles!" Moon's eyes widened. So there was a correlation here somewhere. "But then…what does that mean? I hope the others are okay. If they had to use Z-moves as well, then…"

Cue Elizabeth and Pikachu running in from a third corridor, sliding to a halt when she saw James and Meowth first. "Huh!? Team Rocket!?"

"Another twerp!" James gasped.

"Pika!" Pikachu was of course ready to fight, since 97% of any encounter with Team Rocket was a battle.

"Wait, they're on our side!" Moon said, waving her hands.

When Moon spoke, Elizabeth and Pikachu turned to her, both surprised that she was here. "What? Moon!? You actually came?! I thought you weren't going to help?"

"I changed my mind." Moon said with a firm nod. "I don't really have a lot time to explain, but I came to help and warn you guys, but I'm starting to worry that I was too late. Cipher's trap is already going off and I don't know if we can stop it…"

Clearly, Moon knew some things that Elizabeth didn't. "What's going on…?"

"We can talk about it later!" Moon shook her head. "First, we have to find Lillie and the others. But I have no idea how we even start…"

"Pika! Pika Pika!" Pikachu lifted his hand in the air.

"…Anyone wanna translate?" Elizabeth asked.

"He's saying he can use his nose." Meowth translated. Just as he did, Pikachu put his nose to the ground and started sniffing around. His sense of smell wasn't as strong as Lycanroc's, but if anyone could track Ash's scent, it would be his longtime partner.

"If we find where they took the twerps, maybe we'll find Jessie, too." James nodded.

Pikachu picked up on something. "Pika!" Without saying much more, the yellow mouse led the way, the strange combination of a group following behind him.

"He said the twerp is somewhere under us!" Meowth translated.

"Under? So in the mountain somewhere?" Moon wondered aloud. Whatever the case, they had to save everyone!

.

.

Venus suddenly stopped just as things were about to get interesting, flipping her hair with a huff. "I think that's enough."

"What!?" Grace narrowed her eyes. Was Venus trying to run away? She wasn't having it. "Salamance, Fire Blast!" Mega Salamance quickly flew through the air, aiming a potent blast of fire towards Mega Steelix to burn it.

"I said…that's _enough_." Venus snapped her fingers, commanding Steelix to return fire with a Flash Cannon. The result was a powerful explosion that shook the base just a little bit more. "Ninjask." Ninjask cloaked itself in a shadowy aura before lunging at Salamance, slamming into the dragon to send it flying backwards.

"You don't get to decide that!" Marcus exclaimed. "Psycho Cut!" Mega Gallade jumped forward, swinging its bladed arms multiple times. Each swing sent a sharp blade of kinetic energy forward. These blades collided against Steelix and Ninjask, sending the two backwards, but they were more enraged than anything else.

"Dragon Rush!" Salamance recovered from the Shadow Blitz, now diving towards Steelix at full power.

Venus sighed heavily. These two just didn't understand the position they were in, so she'd have to show them. With another snap of her fingers, a large screen was on display, showing a video feed of an unseen area in the base. In that area, Ash and the others were trapped in a cage, their Pokémon separated under a different change. "I _do_ get to decide that, actually. And if you want to ensure your friends aren't hurt, you'll stop right there."

"Wh-!?" Grace's eyes widened and Salamance came to a halt. "What is this!?"

"This is live footage of the little prison we've set up in the mountain." Venus explained. "All your friends have used Z-moves so far, and we've used that to our advantage to capture them. They're in a bit of pain right now, but we can expedite the process if you really want."

"…What do you want?" Marcus asked.

Venus clasped her hands together, grinning victoriously. "Surrender to me and I'll make sure your friends don't get hurt. You don't _really _want to take the risk of losing someone else, don't you? Unlike Kasumi, you might actually be able to save them….~" Venus knew just the right buttons to press. She was fearsome in battle, but even more so when it came to manipulating people. Watching the internal struggle on Grace and Marcus' faces was a delight! She knew they couldn't risk losing more friends.

"…." Marcus and Grace looked at each other before returning their Pokémon. They didn't really have a choice with their friends' lives at stake.

"Very good!" Venus clapped. "You two are so very obedient when you want to be! Come now, follow me. I'll take you right to your friends with your heads held low in defeat."

.

.

Lovrina and Rui also had to come to a halt once Miror B revealed his trump card: the same Video that Venus had shown Marcus and Grace. Seeing their friends held captive caused them to stop in their tracks immediately. "What's going on here?" Lovrina demanded to know. "This is like, so uncool! Release them!"

"Emergency! Emergency!" Rotom was panicking, flying all over the room as Ash and the others were clearly in danger.

"Ah, I'm afraid I can't do that. I'm not the one in power over that." Miror B said while sliding left and ride, an annoying grin on his face as the two girls were right where he wanted them. "A few bumps in the road can't stop this beat! So what will be your next step? Are you going to continue booging against this rhythm, or will you fall in step?"

Rui looked at Lovrina. They thought about fighting… "What's stopping us from kicking your butt?" Rui questioned.

"Well…" Miror B began. "As you can see, your friends are trapped. But what you can't see is that those lovely little Z-rings of theirs are also causing them so much pain, they can't even dance! And with a little tweaking, who knows what could happen to them…"

"This must be a result of their Z-moves!" Rotom surmised. "But some of us don't use Z-moves…"

"Correct, music box!" Miror B pointed at Rotom. "We trapped your friends who used Z-moves, and for those who don't you now have two glorious choices! Keep fighting and risk putting the rhythm of your friends to an end, or you can join them and keep the music going!"

"So, members of the International Police, what will you do?" Miror B asked while dancing in place. He asked that question knowing full well what their only option was, but he wanted to see them squirm just a little bit.

"We have no choice…" Rotom said. The girls glared at it, because even though it was true, they really did not want to hear it vocalized like that. "…Sorry."

.

.

Scott and Ein were locked in combat. Darmanitan swung a blazing fist towards Huntil, but the sea serpent swiftly evaded and propelled itself into the air. "Crunch!" Ein commanded. Huntail slithered down from the sky, a gigantic pair of jaws appearing before it, and it bit down on Darmanitan's arm.

"Fire Punch!" Scott wasn't fazed. Darmanitan cringed as Huntail's fangs sunk into its arm, but since it had a tight grip; it was going to make use of it. Flames ignited around the ice type's hand and it slammed a blazing fist into Huntail's face, forcing it to relinquish its grip! "And Icicle Crash!" Darmanitan let out a shout and created multiple sharp icicles that flew forwards Huntail!

"Aqua Tail!" Huntail slithered forward as a miniature cyclone appeared round its tail, which it used to break through the incoming Icicle Crash, and strike Darmanitan directly! The ice type slid backwards, shaking off the damage that was dealt. "Just as persistent as you were back then. But you're the psychic, are you not? You of all people should know how this story ends."

Scott remained silent, placing his hands in his pockets. "I already know that you've put my friends in grave danger. I don't see my powers to tell me that. But you should be aware that I _do_ know how this story ends. You haven't won the day yet."

Ein scoffed. "Your powers of 'foresight' leave you blind to what's currently happening. You should already know what happens next if I so demand it."

"Yes. I've simply been buying as much time as I can…but I see that I can't do so anymore." Scott then did the unthinkable and returned Darmanitan."So as far as this battle goes, you're the victor, if only so that I may spare my friends any harm from your dirty antics."

Scott's surrender made Ein grin. As far as the head scientist was concerned, this was his…Cipher's victory. "And to think I thought we'd need a failsafe. I don't know what's been taking Folly so long, but clearly he wasn't needed." He then glanced at the frozen Trudly still in his office and shook his head. "A fool as well. Miror B only has two reliable grunts, and they barely fit the bill."

"Take me to my friends." Scott demanded.

"So you wish to join them? Very well. We have room for all of you!" Ein grinned while motioning at Alakazam, who used Teleport to whisk them away.

.

.

"I can't believe I'm stuck here with you twerps!" Jessie groaned her wrist still in pain due to her Z-ring. That, combined with being trapped in a cage with her enemies, in enemy territory really did sour her mood.

"I don't wanna be in here with you either!" Takeba huffed. "And I wish this thing would stop hurting! It's killing me!"

"We have to find a way out of here…" Kiawe stared at the Pokémon that were entrapped across the room. They had no way of moving either, meaning they were completely trapped.

"It's really hard to think when my Z-ring is trying to kill me…" Lillie mumbled. In a flash of light, Scott was placed inside the cage along with them. "Ah, Scott…!"

"Are you okay?!" Ash questioned.

"Was Mallow with you!?" Lana was concerned for her friend. She left Mallow all alone.

"Unfortunately, I was on my own." Scott shook his head.

Dakim then walked forward, arms crossed over his chest as he looked at the sight before him. "Well well! Looks like we rounded all of them up nicely!"

"Uh, you're missing one, you big meathead." Ferma told the muscle head. "Where's the green one? Or the annoying one with blue hair?"

"Doesn't matter!" Dakim laughed. "None of them are strong enough to make a difference."

"I agree." Venus walked with Marcus and Grace in front of her. "All you have to do is put a friend in danger and they become so obident! Ein had the right idea, but Folly is just sooooo sloooooooow!"

"I'll have to punish him later for slacking on the job!" Miror B had Rotom, Rui and Lovrina walk in front of him. This was nearly everyone Cipher wanted to deal with and they had killed two birds with one stone. "But we'll have to reap the rewards later!"

"Looks like Reath got captured. A shame." Gorigan shrugged his shoulders. "She's gonna miss out on all the fun."

"But this is a sizeable audience." Ein snapped his fingers once more, Alakazam using Teleport to warp Marcus, Grace, Rui, Rotom, and Lovrina into the cage along with everyone else. It was a pretty tight squeeze due to the size of their group, but this worked well enough. "I wonder what's taking Ardos so long. He's going to miss the best part. The part where we claim victory."

"You haven't won yet!" Ash proclaimed, but the members of Cipher all just laughed at him.

"Haven't won? We have all of you exactly where we want you." Ferma didn't think she'd have to explain this. "Just how do you plan on escaping, huh? You can't even move, and neither can your Pokémon!"

"My brother is on his way!" Lillie shouted. "And we also have M-" Before she could continue that, Scott placed his arm in front of her to silence her, which confused her for a moment.

"What do you think one person can do against all of us? Your brother may be strong, but even he cannot fend off against all of us at once." Ein was making it clear that Cipher had no qualms about teaming up on a single person. "I will say, it was a bit of a hassle to get to this point, but everything works out for me in the end anyway."

"Are you guys all right?" Lovrina crouched down, taking a look at all the sparking Z-rings. "…!"

"Curious, are ya? We have a machine above the base that jams Z-rings. Since they already used them, we decided to flip the script and make it so that it would harm them after." Gorigan explained. "With that, they're now sitiin' ducks! All of ya are really."

"If you think I'm going to sit here and take this!" Jessie had enough strength to grip the bars of the cage, violently tugging at them in a fit of rage, but as one would expect, it wasn't working.

"We didn't get all of you, but this is still enough." Dakim was clearly excited. "This is where we planned to blow up the mountain anyway. An explosion here would cause a lot of damage and bury you guys under the snow."

"That's awful!" Lillie gasped.

"Wait, what about all those Shadow Pokémon!?" Rui asked. "Were you going to leave them to die, too!?"

"Of course. What an asinine question." Ein shook his head, letting out a quiet sigh. "So long as we have the means to _make_ Shadow Pokémon, it doesn't matter how many we lose. That is for the next stage of my plan, but unfortunately for you, you won't be around to see it. But as thanks for making it this far, we'll be taking and converting all of your Pokémon to Shadow Pokémon. After seeing their capabilities, they would make fine tools."

"You're the worst! I won't allow it!" Kiawe roared at the top of his lungs. This was not how things ended! He refused!

"You have no say in the matter." Venus snickered. "Thanks so much for donating to our cause!"

"Any final words? I'll hear them out." Ein turned, giving the Ultra Guardians a victorious smile. Today was the day he triumphed at long last!

"I do!" A voice came from above. When everyone glanced up, they saw Mallow standing up on an incline with Shaymin and Tsareena!

"Mallow!" Lana was happy to see her, but then immediately concerned considering how outnumbered she was. "Wait…!"

"Oh. It's the weak one." Dakim scoffed. "She can't do anything."

Mallow heard this of course. Despite how she felt, she couldn't stand around and watch things play out like this. "I don't care what you think or say! I'm not going to let you hurt my friends anymore! I will protect them, just you watch me!"

.

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Next Time: Blooming Desire.


	42. Chapter 42: Blooming Desire

Cipher was on the cusp of victory over Ash and his friends. There were a few outliers that stopped this otherwise perfect plan from going off without a hitch. These few outliers were the last hope for the Ultra Guardians if they wanted to save Alola and perhaps the world from Cipher's final revival. Gladion's late arrival was all due to Moon and because of that, he was battling Nascour higher up on Mt. Lanakila. He was currently locked in battle against Nascour and his Mega Aerodactyl, both of whom were prepared for Silvally and its RKS System ability, leaving Gladion in a bit of a bind. "Your struggle is pointless, child. You can fight all you wish, but you won't be able to defeat me. Stone Edge." Aerodactyl landed on the ground, sending sharp stones towards Silvally from the ground, these stones much larger than the ones used before.

"Crush Claw!" Gladion knew his situation had gotten tougher, but that wasn't going to stop him from fighting with everything he had. Silvally ran forward, using Crush Claw to cleave through the incoming Stone Edge while racing towards Aerodactyl. Once close, Gladion switched attacks. "Now, Multi Attack!" Water formed around Silvally's claw and it swung downward to strike Aerodactyl.

"Aerial Ace!" Aerodactyl flew forward, its talon colliding with Silvally's claw. The two were even for a moment. Silvally did have a Swords Dance boost in its favor, but after Mega Evolving, Aerodactyl gained a massive increase in power, and its ability, Tough Claws, raised the power of moves that involved physical contact. As a result, Sivlally was eventually thrown backwards, violently at that.

Sivlally tumbled along the snowy ground, eventually coming to a halt by digging its claws into the ground to halt its momentum. "Sivlally, are you all right!?" Gladion asked and his partner gave a firm nod. They were outclassed in terms of raw power, but this didn't faze Gladion.

"Still got some fight in you? You children are very persistent." Ardos crossed his arms. "You won't win against me. I am an admin of the organization that will change the world."

"I wonder how many people have said those exact words and still lost." Gladion retorted quickly, much to Ardos' annoyance. "You know what the greatest thing about a Pokémon battle is? Man, woman, child, it doesn't matter. Everyone's equal in battle. Air Slash!" Right after his words, Gladion commanded Silvally to attack once more. Sivlally released multiple blades of wind from its quills, several of them striking Aerodactyl, forcing it to retreat into the skies, where it then had to dodge the Air Slash with its quick movements.

"Enough of your useless drivel! Aerodactyl, use Stone Edge!" With excellent aerodynamic maneuverability, Aerodactyl was easily able to dodge the incoming Air Slash, retaliating by using Stone Edge as projectile of its own. Numerous stones appeared around Aerodactyl's body and they flew forward to clash with the Air Slash, resulting in an explosion that created a thick cloud of smoke. "Now, Earth Power!" The prehistoric Pokémon landed on the ground, calling upon the power of the earth, which bubbled and rose to the surface, exploding under Silvally's feet.

"Watch out!" Gladion shouted. Silvally jumped back to avoid the first eruption, only to be forced to jump yet again; a third explosion then happened and this one caught the artificial Pokémon, causing it to cry out in pain as it stumbled back, panting heavily as it really was on its last legs. _"Silvally won't be able to hold out much longer. I need to think of a plan to stop him and take out that machine in one fell swoop…"_ Gladion couldn't risk using Noivern either, as he would be unable to get down the mountain safely if it got hurt. He took a glance at his Z-ring, but while in range of that strange machine, he felt it was wiser _not _to use it. It was his gut instinct.

"Trying to think of a way out? I won't let you!" Ardos would not allow Gladion any reprieve. "Stone Edge!" Aerodactyl was still grounded, so it simply slammed its talons on the snowy ground once more, causing multiple stones to launch up from the ground, covering Silvally's left and right, forcing it onto a straight path that led directly to Aerodactyl. "Come, boy! Let me finish crushing you."

"Fine, let's end this!" Gladion didn't have time to think, only time to act. What would Ash do in time like this? He already knew. "Crush Claw!" With no other options, Silvally sprinted forward as a crimson aura wrapped around its left claw, all while Aerodactyl took to the air, preparing to sink its teeth into its prey.

"This is the end for you, boy! Thunder Fang!" Aerodactyl's maw charged up with lightning. Since Silvally had its Water Memory installed, this would be the final nail in Gladion's coffin. All Aerodactyl had to do was wait for Sivlally to jump, and it would be over!

Gladion reached into his pocket for something, all while Silvally's headpiece opened up. Just as it lunged, Gladion threw that object forward. He was used to throwing items at Sivlally in tense moments like these; all he could hope for was that he was fast enough. There was an explosion as Aerodactyl bit down on Sivlally before Crush Claw could reach! Sivlally's neck was caught within Aerodactyl's electrically charged maw, signifying that prey had been caught. "Silvally…!"

Ardos simply smirked. "That, boy, is the end."

Gladion paused for a few seconds, keeping an eye on Silvally. "…"

"Siv…" The beast killer grunted, and as it did…its quills and eyes started to change color, from blue to brown. "SIVLALLLLLY!"

And just like that, Ardos' eyes widened. "What!? But how!?" When he looked at the ground, he saw the Water Memory no the snow. "That's…!?"

"You thought you could trap me with Silvally's own ability, didn't you?" Gladion said while taking his signature pose. "Unfortunately for you, adaptability is Silvally's strongest trait. I knew if I had no choice but to take you on directly, you'd try to use Thunder Fang. You have all your weaknesses covered, so I had to think outside the box and change to the one type you'd never expect! Though your proud Aerodactyl claims to be the king of the skies, today it shall fall to the ground!" Sivlally's type changed from Water to Ground, rendering it immune to Thunder Fang. "And now…this is the perfect range. Air Slash!" Since they were still so close together, Sivlally was able to release a point blank Air Slash, which forced Aerodactyl to fall from the sky.

"Aerodactyl! Destroy this child right now!" Ardos demanded. "Use Aerial Ace!"

"I don't think so! Silvally, let's finish this! Multi Attack!" Sivlally pounced on Aerodactyl once more as it fell from the sky. Because Aerodactyl was falling and under the effects of gravity, its Flying typing meant nothing, and as a result…it was just a falling Rock type with a Ground type preparing to finish it off. As they flew down, they shattered the machine pointing at the base, and continued to fall further still.

.

.

Mallow was effectively surrounded on all sides. She had Shaymin and Tsareena with her, but her 3 to the many members of Cipher surrounding her was not in her favor. Despite that, she was not backing down because her friends were in pain and in danger. As far as she knew, she was the only one who would be able to save them. Dakim was the first one to laugh. "And what do you think you can do!?" The large man asked. "You couldn't even take me on! If we fought right now, it would be the exact same result, and the little blue one won't be able to help you this time!"

"Plus, you are severely outnumbered." Venus brought her hand to her mouth, covering her snicker. "Do you really think you can make a difference? It's quite ironic, actually. You were so weak; you weren't even able to use your Z-move against Dakim! We knew you weren't a huge threat, but you've completely surpassed our expectations!"

"I…" Mallow clenched a hand into a fist.

"Mallow…" Lana frowned. If only she wasn't tied down like everyone else. There was nothing any of them could do but watch Mallow's brave stand.

"Do you honestly believe you stand a chance?" Ferma placed her hands on her hips, leaning forward. "You lost to one of us, so why do you think you can stand here even now?"

"I won't let you hurt them!" Mallow exclaimed, standing her ground. To tell the truth, she was incredibly frightened, but all her friends were behind her. She had to do something. She didn't care if she wasn't as strong as Lana, Ash, or the others. They were her friends and she would not lose another person important to her. Not again. "Tsareena, Magical Leaf! Shaymin, Energy Ball!"

"Oh, let me do this! I want to crush her spirit." Venus said while tossing a Pokeball forward, calling forth Steelix. "Use Iron Tail!" As the Mega Steelix emerged, it swung its steel tail forward, easily deflecting the Energy Ball and Magical Leaf with no damage to its self. The large iron serpent towered over Mallow and her Pokémon, instilling a sense of fear.

"Mallow, get out of there!" Grace shouted.

"We'll be fine!" Sophocles exclaimed.

Mallow wasn't listening. Cipher wouldn't let her escape even if she tried. Fighting was her only option. "Trop Kick!" Tsareena jumped into the air, swinging her leg at Steelix's face for a direct hit. Damage was minimal, and Trop Kick lowered Attack by one stage, but…

"Iron Tail." Venus yawned as Steelix lazily swung its tail forward. Even with its Attack lowered, Tsareena was crushed into the ground, Steelix's tail weighing her down and preventing her from getting back up. "My my, was it really this easy?"

"TSAREENA!" Mallow gasped.

Shaymin then jumped forward, its body glowing bright green as it struggled to attack. "Shay…min….!"

"Aw…! That's so adorable!" Venus clasped her hands together.

"What is it tryin' to do?" Gorigan asked.

"It must be trying to use Seed Flare. But it is so inexperienced, it cannot muster the attack correctly, even in a moment of desperation." Nascour surmised before calling out his Metagross once more. "Meteor Mash." Mega Metagross flew forward, slamming into Shaymin's body with such force it rebounded off the cage confining the other Pokémon, much to everyone's shock.

"Are we really watching this!? Why can't we do something!?" Jessie was a member of Team Rocket, for sure. But Team Rocket stood for righteous evil, not…this.

"If I could, I would!" Marcus snapped.

"We have to…do something…" Takeba groaned.

Mallow started to rush to Shaymin, but Venus snapped her fingers, commanding Steelix to fire a Flash Cannon. It didn't hit Mallow, but it exploded close enough to where she was caught in its radius, now tumbling along the ground. "Ow…"

"Malllllloooow!" Lillie, Kiawe, and Ash all called out.

Ein loved this. This was what victory tasted like? "At long last….now, you will watch as we put an end to your friend, right, Venus?"

"Oh, of course! Steelix, Flash Cannon one more time. Make it a big one." Venus grinned. Steelix followed this order, opening its moth as light energy began to charge, aimed directly at Mallow.

"Danger! Danger!" Rotom was flying around in a panic.

"She won't survive that!" Lovrina gripped the bars of the cage.

"Stop it!" Rui pleaded.

"…." Scott didn't say anything, but he was just as tense as everyone else.

"Oh my my…I guess this one's song has ended." Miror B shrugged his shoulders. "At least go out on a high note!" Mallow could only stare in fear as Steelix released the Flash Cannon. She closed her eyes, embracing what might be her end. There was a large explosion, followed by a scream, and a thick cloud of smoke…

"NOOOOO!"

"…." As the smoke cleared, Mallow was still bracing for impact. "H-Huh…?" When she looked around, there was an Electro Web around her in the shape of a dome, effectively protecting her from the Flash Cannon. "T-This is…?"

"What?!" Venus suddenly grew very angry. "Who did that!?"

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

Ash's Pikachu came sprinting down from above, landing on top of Steelix's head. It then used Steelix as a platform, rapidly hoping down its segmented body before lunging at Metagross, lightning sparking around its body. "PIKACHUUUUU!" A strong Thunderbolt was released, striking Metagross directly.

"What!?" Nascour grunted.

"Mareanie, use Spike Cannon!" James' voice called out. Mareanie appeared, pelting Steelix with numerous spikes. They didn't do much damage, but it was enough to annoy the steel giant.

Just as the Spike Cannon ended, Zoroark was seen right behind Mareanie, a Focus Blast charged within its hands. "Let 'em have it!" Elizabeth shouted. Zoroark released the Focus Blast right in Steelix's face, the raw force of the attack forcing Steelix to recoil and release Tsareena from its hold.

"AHHHH!" Venus screamed.

"What's this!?" Ferma grunted.

Elizabeth, Pikachu, James and Meowth arrived, all of them standing in front of Mallow. "Sorry, but did you really think that you were going to get your way?" Elizabeth said with a smug grin.

"You didn't think you could defeat Team Rocket, did you!?" Meowth said smugly.

"Now this is a weird team up…" Marcus said with a relieved smile.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Elizabeth turned around. "Don't worry; we'll get you all out of there in a sec! You good, Mallow? You held on pretty long, not bad."

"Y-Yeah…" Mallow said while grabbing Tsareena and Shaymin.

"There's more help on the way, twerp." James said.

"Huh…?" Mallow didn't understand.

"Now it's getting interestin'…!" Dakim grinned while calling forth his Claydol, ready to throw down! Miror B followed suit by calling out the Shadow Emboar he had on him. Things were about to get fun!

"So what!? That doesn't mean anything!" Ein scoffed. "You're still vastly outnumbered! We have Ardos on standby outside! And as soon as he gets here!" Just as Ein said that, Aerodactyl crashed through the ceiling, crushed into the ground with Sivlally's claw on its throat. Aerodactyl reverted back to normal to signify its defeat. "WHAT!? BUT HOW!?"

Gladion dropped down thanks to Noivern. "You had an annoying patrolman up there, but I took care of him."

"Brother…!" Lillie's eyes lit up. In fact, as soon as Gladion crash landed, she felt a whole lot better! Her Z-ring stopped hurting her. Not just Lillie but everyone else felt better as well.

"Took you long enough. What were you doing up there, playing a game?" Elizabeth rolled her eyes.

Mallow used this chance of confusion to look at Tsareena who nodded at her in return. While Cipher was distracted, she crossed her arms, her Grassium-Z shining brightly. "I will do my part here! I won't let anyone hurt my friends, no matter what! I won't lose anyone a second time! Tsareena, let's do this together!" She grabbed Tsareena's hands, and then lifted herself into the air, sprouting like a tree with new life. The Z-power flooded into Tsareena, who generated a large orb of solar power. _**"BLOOM DOOM!"**_

"What!? No! Stop her!" Ein demanded. But it was too late. The beam of light that was Bloom Doom crashed down on the cage surrounding Ash and the others, destroying it easily and freeing them from their prison!

"Nice job, Mallow!" Ash said as Pikachu hopped on his shoulder. "You're not winning this time, Cipher!"

"I dunno…" Ferma pointed at the cage that still had their Pokémon trapped. "Your friend made a pretty bad move. Freeing you doesn't mean much if your Pokémon are still trapped. So I think you're still right where we want ya…"

Ein pointed at Gladion. "You were supposed to be ensnared in our trap as well! How did you avoid it!?

Gladion stepped forward, one hand in front of his face as he glared at Ein. "You thought the day was yours. That the sun would shine brightly on your plans. But little did you know that the Moon was here to eclipse that sun of yours."

"The moon?" Gorigan didn't understand. But they all soon would as a strong bolt of Thunder flew by, destroying the cage that housed the Pokémon of Ash and his friends. "WHOA!?" As soon as Mimikyu was free, it made a beeline for Ash's Pikachu, but then recalled its rage at Cipher which surpassed that for a fleeting moment.

"Well, looks like the field is pretty even now." Takeba said with a growing smirk.

"WHO!?" Everyone turned to see Moon around the corner, giving a slight grin.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Moon said while giving a peace sign.

"Moon!?" Ash the others were all extremely surprised to see her for various reasons.

"Moon!" Lillie's eyes lit up.

"….who is that?" Nascour demanded to know.

"Who is that and why is she here?!" Venus pointed. "I don't remember hearing anything about this Moon!?"

"Hi. I'm Moon, their friend." Moon introduced herself, stepping out from the corner with her hands on her hips. "And I came here to stop you. I already took care of that one guy back on Melemele."

"Uh…I'm afraid I'm not quite familiar with this girl's rhythm." Miror B started to sweat a bit.

"Their friend? Impossible!" Ein shook his head. "I researched everyone in Alola for the longest time! Weeks before the Pokémon League here was even held! I had everyone related to that brat and his friends spied on! And you were not there at all!" This variable that introduced itself was throwing Ein off his game. Even the other members of Cipher were shaken by Moon's appearance. "Where the hell did you come from!?" Scientifically speaking, this did not make sense. Ein refused to accept that this girl somehow ruined everything.

Moon frowned for a moment before shaking her head. "Well…it only makes sense that you didn't know about me. I've been keeping to myself a lot lately. I've hardly gone outside the last few days because, to tell the truth, I'm an emotional wreck right now. But when I learned that you had them cornered…I couldn't stand by and let you hurt my friends! So I came here as fast as I could and warned everyone I could about that plan of yours! I'm just glad I was able to stall Gladion so he could save everyone!"

"Her eyes…" Kiawe noticed it right away. Moon's gaze was far more determined than it was when they last saw her.

"That doesn't explain anything!" Ferma huffed. "Where did you come from!? And how did we miss you!?"

"Oh, that?" Moon then cracked a smile. "You couldn't have known about me prior to all your research anyway. Because…I don't exist. I come from a different Alola, and while I may not have a place in this one, I will do my part to protect it! So why don't you get out of Alola right now!?"

"…Moon…" Lille had a wide grin on her lips.

"Kch…" Ein couldn't believe this.

Trudly then came rushing in. "E-Ein! There's a girl, and…!"

"WE KNOW!" Venus screamed. "Who does this little upstart think she is!? You don't exist?! I don't care where you came from! You won't exist when I'm through with you! Steelix!" Steelix roared and moved to slam its tail down on Moon and her Pikachu.

"Counter." A lazy voice spoke. Before anyone knew it, a Krookodile appeared, catching Steelix's tail with a red aura around its body. Steelix was then blown backwards by a mighty Counter that nearly made it topple over.

"WHO!?" Venus turned and gasped. It was the one person Cipher managed to avoid for this long: Nanu.

"Oh crap! The Kahuna ?! How did he…!?" Dakim grunted.

"I called the cops." Takeba stuck her tongue out. "There's more people waiting outside, too! You're totally surrounded!" It was just Acerola outside, but Takeba was pushing that bluff as hard as she could. Considering the amount of people who showed up to help, her bluff was extremely believable.

"I don't appreciate this trouble you've caused on my island." Nanu said while keeping his hands in his pockets. "So why don't you just come quietly and save us all the trouble? You've got a lot to answer for. We already got the one outside the mountain, too."

"The one called Ardos is stranded at the top of the mountain since his mount is down here. So he's free to be arrested at any time…if he doesn't freeze over first." Gladion said.

"Crap, they got Reath!?" Ferma began to sweat.

"It is SO HARD to find good help these days!" Miror B was panicking, but hid it with dance moves.

"What do we doooooooooo?" Trudly looked around frantically. Somehow, the situation turned on them! They were the cornered ones now!?

Ein let out a quiet sigh. Victory was snatched away from him by…Moon. That girl's arrival threw everything he had planned out the window. "Damn you…then I have no choice." Ein pulled a small remote from his pocket and clicked the red button. "Regardless of the situation, you're all still exactly where I wanted you to begin with! I'll bury every single one of you in this mountain!" As soon as he pressed the button…numerous areas of Mt. Lanakila began to explode, just as they were warned about. Mt. Lanakila shook violently as numerous explosions took place outside.

"This mountain will be your grave."

.

.

Next Time: Avalanche.


	43. Chapter 43: Avalanche

[A few minutes prior to Ein pressing the denotation switch.]

Kasumi wandered to Mt. Lanakila. After that whole incident at the Team Skull Hideout supposedly over her, she allowed her curiosity to get the best of her. There was a strange pain in her chest as she approached the base of the mountain. "Why does my chest hurt…" The girl placed a hand on her chest, her red eye clenched shut. Her chest felt tight, but it wasn't from anxiety. It was something else. A strange, nostalgic feeling that caused her pain. "Nnn…"

"So this is where you went." That voice belonged to Plumeria. The elder sister of Team Skull did not seem too pleased to find Kasumi wandering around here on her own. "You've been acting strange since yesterday. What's up?"

"…!" Kasumi stiffened as she was found out by Plumeria. She should have known that she wouldn't have been able to slip out of the hideout that easily. "…I…I saw what happened yesterday. My memory is still unclear, but I know now that my name is Kasumi. I feel like I've seen those people before, but I wasn't sure. So I wanted to ask them."

"And what did you think coming to the coldest place in the region would do?" Plumeria was lucky she brought a sweater.

"I saw them fly here from somewhere a while ago, but I don't know where they landed." Kasumi explained. "And as soon as I neared the mountain, I felt a strange pain in my chest. It's familiar, but not in a good way. The closer I get to this mountain, the more it hurts…" Plumeria couldn't see it, but there was a faint black aura around Kasumi as she spoke.

Plumeria let out a sigh. She had no idea what was going on with Kasumi, but she figured this wasn't the best way to go about it. "You're probably just tired. We're going back."

"No, I can't…not yet." Kasumi shook her head, starting up the mountain. "I have to find out what this means!"

"K! K-Kasumi, get back here!" That's what Plumeria got for being so soft on her. Groaning, she had no choice but to follow Kasumi before she hurt herself somehow. "When we get back, you're going to get it…" She meant it too. If there was a time to start hammering down the law on the one she had grown somewhat fond of. "Seriously, I'm not messing around!"

"Sorry, Plum…!" Kasumi was sprinting up the mountain, only to see two people coming down. "Uh…"

It was Acerola. She was riding on her Gengar nicknamed Rapooh. Gengar was holding Ferma while the ghost of her deceased Mimikyu friend, Mimikins, followed quickly behind. She noticed Kasumi and Plumeria on the mountain and waved to them. "You have to get off this mountain as soon as possible! It's dangerous up here!"

"Huh? What's she talking about?" Plumeria lifted a brow. She hadn't the slightest clue what was going on.

"This mountain is about to have an avalanche!" Acerola told them before flying off to another section of the mountain. There were people skiing who needed to be told this as well. The only issue was that Acerola wasn't sure if she'd have the time to get to them all.

"An avalanche!?" Kasumi's eyes widened. "But…"

"If that girl's serious then we have to go NOW." Plumeria wasn't taking no for an answer.

"But…those people!" Kasumi knew that Ash and the others weren't off this mountain.

"There's nothing we can do from all the way down here." Plumeria said, grabbing Kasumi's wrist.

"But….But!" Kasumi tugged back against Plumeria. The more she resisted, the more that black aura flared around her body. It was invisible to Plumeria, but the black sparks that started to dance around her body were not. "Agh…!"

"What the…?!" Pumeria released Kasumi, feeling the shock. "OW! What's wrong with you…!?"

.

.

"This mountain will be your grave." Ein told the Ultra Guardians.

"W-What…!?" Moon looked around frantically. Ein was really about to bring the mountain down on top of them. "Are you insane!?"

"Very." Ein held a slight smirk. "Alakazam! We're leaving!"

"Stop that Alakazam!" Rui exclaimed.

"Lycanroc, Accelrock!" Ash commanded. Lycanroc howled and started to sprint forward at top speeds, aiming to slam into and incapacitate Alakazam. They couldn't let Cipher escape now! Just as Lycanroc lunged forward, it was intercepted by the Iron Tail of Venus' Steelix. The two clashed and Lycanroc was ultimately forced back. "Ah!"

"Sorry, but that is our ride. I don't intend to get an eternal rest under this rock." Venus huffed.

"You deserve it!" Grace shouted.

Alakazam's body started to glow as it began to use Teleport. At this point, no one could stop it. Cipher was going to get away with only a few losses in numbers. But as they started to leave, Ein glared towards Moon; the one variable that he couldn't have accounted for that ruined his complete victory. "You may have one the day this time…but next time, I will NOT fail…." And with that, Alakazam teleported the remaining members of Cipher and their Pokémon away. away. Ein, Venus, Dakim, Ferma, Miror B, and Gorigan, and Trudly all got away. Ardos was included, as a quick trip to his location salvaged him from being left to freeze.

"They're gone…" Kiawe grit his teeth.

"We should take their cue and get outta here!" Marcus said while calling out Dragonite. "Come on, this place isn't gonna last any longer!"

"Wait!" Rui shook her head. "We can't leave yet! There are a lot of Shadow Pokémon in this base! If this mountain collapses they'll!"

"You're kidding me…!" Elizabeth pinched the bridge of her nose. "We're not gonna be able to rescue all of them like this. We can't stop an avalanche…!"

"But we can slow it down." Ash said with a determined expression. "It's not just the Shadow Pokémon, but the people and Pokémon on the mountain as well. There's no doubt they're already aware of what's happening and are trying to get somewhere safe. We have to buy them time!"

"This mountain is gonna collapse and you're trying to buy time!?" Jessie looked at Ash like he was insane. "Say what you will, but we're…!" Before Jessie could say another word, Bewear dropped down from the hole in the ceiling that Gladion created, Stufful on her back. She then scooped up Jessie, James, Meowth, and their Pokémon before jumping back into the air.

"What even _is_ this feeling!?" The Rocket Trio questioned as they were whisked away to safety by their Guardian Bewear.

"…That's not even fair!" Takeba whined. "What are we supposed to do!?"

"Let's split into teams!" Moon suggested. "One team goes to warn the people and slow the Avalanche down as much as we can! The other goes to grab the Shadow Pokémon!"

"Good idea!" Lillie nodded. Just then, their Ride Pokémon all dropped down, ushering for their trainers to hurry.

"I'll help with the avalanche." Gladion said with a nod. "We also have to do something about that…"

"I can round up those Pokémon." Nanu said while rubbing the back of his neck. This turned into a much bigger bargain that he was hoping for, but he was going to save the complaining for later. They had to make it out of this first.

"Rui, Rotom, and Scott! You come with us!" Lovrina said. "We'll take care of the Shadow Pokémon. The rest of you do something about this snow!"

"Roger!" The Ultra Guardians said before returning their Pokémon, and heading outside!

.

.

Back at Aether Foundation, Lusamine was anxiously awaiting some kind of report from the Ultra Guardians. To pass the time, she was looking for Ultra Wormholes that were related to where Moon came from. She had a strange reading in the area near Route 1 of Melemele, which caused her to lift a brow. It was a particularly strong one. "…What is this…?"

That's when Wicke arrived with some bad news. "Lusamine, we have an issue…!"

"What's the matter?" Lusamine stood up from her seat, staring at Wicke worriedly.

"Mt. Lanakila has suffered damage in a severe explosion!" Wicke reported.

"What!?" Lusamine's eyes widened. "Was that their plan this whole time!? Are the Ultra Guardians okay!?"

"We don't know yet." Faba adjusted his visor. "It happened only a few moments ago." There was some live footage; it wasn't the best, but one could see a massive avalanche barreling down the mountain. The manipulated force of nature was a dangerous one.

"Come on…" Lusamine prayed they would all be safe!

.

.

Ash, Kiawe, Sophocles, Lillie, Moon, Gladion, Lana, Mallow, Marcus, Grace, Elizabeth, and Takeba were all tasked with slowing down avalanche. They knew they had no chance of stopping it completely, but they had to slow it down no matter what. "It looks like people have already begun to evacuate!" Mallow reported.

"But they might not make it in time!" Lana said.

"Okay, so how do we go about slowing down a force of Mother Nature?" Takeba asked.

"Like this! Fire Blast!" Grace had Salamance aim a Fire Blast at a nearby rockface. The ensuing explosion caused numerous boulders to fall in the path of the avalanche. The rocks were completely swallowed up, but due to their size, it did slow down the incoming snow a little bit.

"Oh! Great idea!" Sophocles nodded. "We can impede its progress with the rocks!"

"Let's get to work then!" Marcus patted Dragonite on the back. It didn't move. "…Dragonite? Dragonite!?"

"…!" Dragonite snapped back to attention. It was looking off down towards the mountain. It picked up her scent. But it couldn't act on that right now. There were more pressing matters to deal with and it would be done. Dragonite roared and released a Draco Meteor, the crimson orbs of energy crashing down on various places of the mountain, causing large boulders to fall sporadically along the ground.

"This seems a little ridiculous, but it's our best option." Gladion murmured while Noivern released a Boomburst.

"I don't want anything to happen to the people or Pokémon here." Moon said while flying around, scouting for Pokémon that may have needed help. Of course there was a small Alolan Sandshrew that was stuck on the ground, directly in the path of the avalanche. "Oh no!" And as Moon always did, she raced towards that Sandshrew's aid.

"Moon!" Lillie and Altaria were right behind her and Braviary.

"Again!?" Elizabeth couldn't believe this. Moon was always acting first without thinking.

Braviary swooped down low. Moon reached her arms out and caught the Sandshrew, holding it within her arms. "It's okay, I got you…!" It wasn't as dangerous as some of her previous stunts, but that changed as a boulder was rolling down towards her and Braviary. "Eeep…!" Just before the boulder could hit, Tapu Bulu appeared within the blink of an eye, swinging its bulky arm at the boulder. Wood hammer was the move of choice as it knocked the boulder away, allowing Moon and Braviary to escape. "Tapu Bulu!?"

"Tapu Bulu!" Lillie felt her heart nearly burst out of her chest. "Moon, you have to stop doing that to me…!"

"Sorry…!" Moon said while placing Sandshrew in a safe place.

"Seriously, we're gonna get a heart attack from her one of these days…!" Grace shook her head.

Tapu Bulu took the lead, Grassy Surge creating Grassy Terrain on a large area of the mountain. It then proceeded to use Nature's Madness. It slammed on the ground, causing a wave of energy to appear in front of it, holding off the incoming avalanche for a short time. "Bulu!"

"It's helping!" Grace said.

"But what do we do now?" Kiawe asked. "It can't hold all of that off forever."

"If we can make a blockage further down, we can probably mitigate the damage and stall for as long as possible." Sopocholes surmised.

"If that's our only option, then let's do it!" Lana and Mallow shouted at the same time. They weren't making much progress as they were.

.

.

"This is the room." Lovrina said while bringing Nanu, Rui, Rotom, and Scott to the place they fought Miror B. "Look at all these Shadow Pokémon."

"There are dozens in here-roto!" Rotom said while flying around. "How are we going to safely transport them all!? Even a single teleport wouldn't be able to…!"

"Xatu." Scott threw a Pokeball into the air, calling out a Xatu. "We have one Teleport Pokémon right here. Xatu's power won't be enough for all of this, which is why we need to find another one with Teleport."

"You're kidding, right?" Rui stared at Scott. "You make it sound so easy…!"

"I am a Psychic." Scott then wandered through the room calmly, eyes fixated on a box all the way in the back. "That one." He then reached into the box, digging around for a bit.

"We don't have all day!" Lovrina shouted, feeling antsy that the rumbling was only getting more intense.

"You might wanna hurry up." Nanu said.

"These are the remains of Cipher's base in Kalos. They had kidnapped dozens of Pokémon; so naturally, there is a Psychic type among them." Scott explained his thought process as he pulled out a Pokeball. "Abra!" And just like that, he called out a Shadow Abra.

"How did he know!?" Rotom was shocked.

"He _is _a psychic." Lovrina pointed out. "But…!"

"Abra." Scott turned to the Shadow Abra and was met with a psychic attack. That was about the reaction he expected as he slid backwards. "Kgh!"

"Scott!" Lovrina and Rui exclaimed.

"I'm fine." Scott shook his head and Xatu stood in front of him. "It's a Shadow Pokémon; it won't obey me that easily. I just have to speak to it and open its heart a little.

"Are you sure you have the time?" Nanu questioned. Taking care of a beillgerent Pokémon had time a place and this was far from it.

"Trust me. I can do this." Scott said with a firm nod. "I only need a few seconds."

.

.

Just up the base of Mt. Lanakila had a blockade of large boulders. Ash and the others weren't sure how strong this blockade would be, but it had to hold because of Tapu Bulu supporting them. "I hope this works!"

"We've managed to buy enough time…!" Mallow reported. "Most of the people have cleared out!"

"That's one matter cleared up! But what about Scott and the others!?" Kiawe asked.

"We just have to trust them!" Ash was firm in this believe.

"You make it sound so easy…" Elizabeth was anxious. Tapu Bulu had done all it could, allowing the avalanche to continue down the mountain.

"Here it comes…" Moon gulped as the snow continued to come down, striking their blockade. There were still a few people who needed to clear out. It was an intense few moments as the boulders slowly began to give way. Everyone watched anxiously as the avalanche came to a slow and steady halt after breaking through the barricade. It was a close call, but they managed to slow the avalanche down completely.

"D-Did we do it!?" Sophocles asked.

"We stopped the snow…!" Lillie clasped her hands together. That was one issue they dealt with, but the mountain was still shaking violently from the explosion moments prior. "But the others…!"

"Did they make it?" Gladion asked. It was silent as the shaking of the mountain started to calm down. They managed to escape from what was Cipher's plot, but…

In a flash of light, Scott, Rui, Lovrina, Nanu, and Rotom appeared. Scott was a little banged up, but he had Shadow Abra and Xatu, and with their help, the dozens of Shadow Pokémon stored under the mountain. It was close and this was shown as Lovrina collapsed to the ground. "UGH! That was annoyingly close…!"

"Is everyone alive?" Nanu wondered.

"I think so…" Lana looked around, doing a headcount. "We have the same amount of people we came here with! I'd call it a win, but…"

"Cipher got away. Sorry…" Moon sighed. "I thought I could help you all catch them. But they still got away."

Ash shook his head, giving Moon a smile. "Why are you apologizing? You came all the way here to help us!"

"Without you, we probably would've been buried." Elizabeth said, rubbing the back of her neck. "Seriously, thanks."

"Yeah, you saved us, Moon." Lillie placed her hands behind her back, giving Moon a genuine smile. "You saved me. If it weren't for you I…"

"Lillie…" Moon managed a tiny smile.

"Cipher had us, I admit…" Lovrina crossed her arms and looked away, while Rui started to count the Pokeballs they saved. "I was naïve when I thought we could approach them so casually."

"They were really strong…" Mallow sighed, thinking back to her failure against Dakim. "I couldn't do anything…"

"That's not true!" Lana objected. "You were there to protect all of us!"

"And then the others came to help…" Mallow continued.

"Can't believe they planned for me too…" Gladion sucked his teeth. His late arrival was supposed to be an ambush, but the tables would have been turned had he arrived on time. "They're more dangerous than I thought."

"We were in a bind from the very beginning. But you helped us, Moon." Kiawe gave Moon a thumbs up. "So thanks!"

"You knew she was coming, didn't you?" Marcus asked Scott.

"If I told you what would happen, it wouldn't have happened." Scott responded. "But it was closer than I thought. Still, I knew that we had an ace up our sleeve. You've seen the kind of person she is."

"She's a good person." Grace nodded. "Just lacking self-confidence. I wonder where that came from…but she looks a little better."

"Yeah, we owe you one!" Sophocles grinned. "Even though you were feeling bad, you came all the way here…"

"Of course I did!" Moon suddenly exclaimed. There were tears welling in her eyes due to how emotional she was feeling, and how she could let it all out now. "I…I may not have a place in this Alola, but…you guys…you guys are my friends! I couldn't leave you to get hurt if I could help! You've done so much for me that I…this was the least I could do. I was afraid the whole time, though. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to help, that I'd just get in the way again..! When I saw Lillie fall, I…!"

Lillie wrapped her arms around Moon for a tight embrace. "You saved me, Moon. Thank you." She then pulled back, that smile still present. "Now that this is over, we can start over, just like you wanted. I want to be your friend. Even if things have been difficult for us, I like being around you. You can have a place with me..."

"Lillie…" Moon sniffled, hazel eyes now letting tear after tear fall. "I'm sorry I was so mean. It wasn't fair to you. I like being around you, too."

"Awww…" Takeba placed her hand on her chest. "They're making up…it's so cute. About time. I told you it would work out!"

"Your idea made them fight to begin with…" Elizabeth pinched the bridge of her nose. "But at least they came out on top in the end."

Gladion was standing a bit off from the group. But watching Moon and Lillie made him sigh softly, a tiny smile appearing on his lips. "You made a difference after all."

Rui finished counting the pokeballs. "Cipher got away, though…so we're back at square one."

"Leave that to me…" Nanu said while waving, beginning to walk off. "Arrested one of 'em. We'll see if she knows where they'll try to hide next. Regardless, they won't be getting off Alola anytime soon."

"Yeah. That's right. I called the cops." Takeba said smugly.

"I guess we can go home and report to Lusamine." Lana slumped. "I'm so tired…"

"Me too…" Ash then looked up and saw Tapu Bulu flying overhead. "Thanks, Tapu Bulu!"

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu was waving as well.

The battle against Cipher came to a close. While they weren't able to completely capture Cipher and put an end to their scheme, they did have a large victory in terms of capturing the Shadow Pokémon they planned to abandon. With no lab and limited resources, Cipher's next plan of attack was limited. Now, all Ash and his friends had to do was wait for Cipher to shut them down one more time…

That's what they were all thinking as they started to go home. Before they could fly away on their ride Pokémon, Kasumi was running towards them at full speed, Plumeria still behind her. "Wait…! I was looking for you…!"

"Is that Kasumi?" Grace's eyes widened and she hopped off of Salamance.

Rui's eyes widened when she saw Kasumi. She was the only one who could see the black aura around her. It was faint now, but… "No way…!"

Kasumi stopped in front of Grace, panting due to the speed she was running at. She wasn't exactly sure what to do at this juncture since everyone was looking at her like they saw a ghost. But she pressed on, taking a deep breath. "I have one question that's been bothering me…do you know who I am…?"

.

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Next Time: The Aftermath.


	44. Chapter 44: The Aftermath

The group was silent on Mt. Lanakila. They escaped Cipher's trap and even managed to save all the Shadow Pokémon Ein planned to leave behind. Now, they were standing before Kasumi and Plumeria. Kasumi had no clear memory of who she once was, but it was undeniable that it was her. Rui could see the shadowy aura still around the girl, since her heart was never purified, only tainted further in darkness due to her own actions and Cipher exploiting her. "Do you know who I am?" Kasumi repeated.

"You…you're our friend." Grace was keeping herself calm and composed. It was taking all she had not to start crying, since she thought for the longest that Kasumi was lost to them. But she always held onto the hope that she was alive, and that proof was right here in front of her. "You're my…"

"Hold up, hold up." Plumeria was ruining this moment. "So you do know each other? I thought you were just blowin' a buncha hot air."

"You're hot." Elizabeth said with no restraint whatsoever, causing just about everyone to look at her. "…What?"

"You just have no restraint, do you?" Takeba pinched the bridge of her nose. "Back to the topic at hand…!"

"I don't know why anyone would make something like that up." Lana crossed her arms. "But I have a question. We've heard the story about Kasumi…so why is she in Team Skull?"

Lana made a fantastic point. What exactly occurred that led Kasumi to being a member of Team Skull. "Yeah…you should know what happened!" Lillie said.

Looks like there was no way for Plumeria to get out of this. The big sister of Team Skull let out a sigh as she tried to recall how she met Kasumi. "To tell the truth, it was weird. A few months ago, me and a few other numbskulls at Team Skull noticed something crash on the route just outside Po Town. We went to check it out and we saw her there, pretty beat up."

"Did you see a ship?" Lovrina asked.

"Somethin' splashed into the water, but we weren't gonna check it out." Plumeria continued. "But when we checked her out, she was unresponsive for a while. We thought she kicked the bucket, but it turns out she was just resting. Didn't think anything wrong with her eyes, but she got a nasty cut on her cheek we had to patch up. Sometimes she'd just wake up and trudge around a bit like a zombie…"

"That must be the drawback of what she did…" Grace mumbled.

"Her heart is still tainted in darkness." Rui whispered. "She never was completely purified, remember? She absorbed a lot of Shadow Power to save us. It was an unprecedented

"I don't remember anything after I woke up." Kasumi rubbed her arm. "I feel very tired a lot of the time. I also feel like my eyes weren't always different."

"Your eyes were both green." Marcus explained, calmly. "You've been through a lot. It would take a while to explain it all…"

"And while that would be nice, I…I don't know if I want to know." Kasumi's words were a shock. "I like being with Team Skull. I don't have to worry about anything. But when I start thinking about what I could be, what my past was…I get nervous. Looking at you all fills me with uncertainty…!" At first she wanted to learn more about her past, but the more she thought about it, the more uncertain she became. Perhaps it was best she didn't learn after all.

"Kasumi, wait…!" Grace did not like the direction this was spiraling in.

"Hold on. You're still in a very sensitive condition…" Scott interjected. "Your heart is still…"

"This is the most emotion she's shown since I've known her." Plumeria then acted like the self-appointed big sister she was, pulling Kasumi behind her. "And it's clearly not doing her any good. So we're gonna leave."

"You can't leave! Not after I just found her!" Grace yelled. "It's my fault she ended up this way, I have to fix it!"

"Grace…" Ash had a frown on her lips. After all this time, she was still blaming herself…

"…" Kasumi looked towards Grace, before looking away. "I'm sorry, for whatever I did to make you sad. I feel like…that's all I ever did to you."

"No, that's not true! You made me happy, giving it your all despite your condition. Your heart was so strong until the very end…" Grace reached out for Kasumi's hand, only to be shocked by the darkness still in her heart. She naturally flinched, but she did not let go this time. "You meant the world to me and Marcus…"

"…You're getting hurt." Kasumi pulled her hand away. "I'm sorry. But maybe I'm just not ready…to hear about the old me…"

That's when Moon stepped forward, surprisingly. "Hey, Kasumi? I know what you're feeling. I have amnesia, too. When I woke up a few weeks ago, I couldn't even remember my own name. I still can't remember everything, but I know there are some important things I still have to do. I have people waiting for me. I know you're afraid of what your past might hold, but you shouldn't run away from it. There are people who miss you, whether you know it or not. They're waiting for you and you should try to meet them halfway, when you're ready."

"Moon…" Lillie was surprised, yet smiling.

"…I see…maybe you're right…" Kasumi's tough attitude as a Team Skull member more than faded away. "I'm sorry for bothering you. I'll…think about it…"

"Wait, before you go." Marcus handed Kasumi Dragonite's Pokeball. "This is yours. We've been holding onto it for you. It's only right you get it back."

Kasumi accepted the Pokeball, staring at it before turning her gaze back to Marcus. "…Do I have any more Pokémon…?"

"You have 5 more." Takeba spoke up. "Blissy, Galvantula, Lucario, Magmortar, and Clefable. But don't worry; I've been looking after them at my estate! They miss you too."

"I see…" Kasumi held Dragonite's Pokeball close to her. "Thank you…"

"C'mon, it's cold here…we're goin' home." Plumeria started to escort Kasumi away.

"Are you sure we should let her go?" Kiawe asked.

"It's fine…" Grace managed a smile. She said it was fine, but…

"We can't do anything for her right now." Lovrina shrugged her shoulders. "We can't purify her heart. It's open, but…it's been seeped in darkness for so long…ugh." That was her fault and she would continue to regret it. "Listen, you guys go report to Lusamine. Rui and I will take care of these Shadow Pokemon. And then we can rest…"

"Right…!" Mallow nodded. "Come on. It's been a long morning."

"…It's only morning?" Elizabeth groaned. It felt like they'd been fighting all day!

"…What a hassle this has all turned into…" Was all Gladion had to say. He had been silent up until now.

.

.

There was no word for a while. To pass the time, Lusamine was reviewing the source of the strange Ultra Wormhole readings she found. Wicke and Faba were in her office, just as anxious as she was. Some time passed and the Ultra Guardians stepped into her office. As soon as Lusamine set her sights on them, she bolted from her chair, wrapping her arms around Gladion and Lillie! "LILLIE! GLADION! I'M SO GLAD YOU TWO ARE OKAY!"

"Ack, Mother..!" Gladion felt embarrassed to say the least.

"W-we're fine, Mother!" Lillie was also embarrassed, but it was good to know Lusamine cared.

"We heard that Mt. Lanakila exploded!" Wicke explained. "So we were very worried."

"We made it out alive, thanks to Moon." Ash said, giving Moon the credit she deserved.

"Ehehe…" Moon rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "I'm just glad I was able to help."

"What of Cipher, though?" Faba asked. "Did you manage detain them?"

"Unfortunately, they got away." Sophocles sighed. "They were really trying to take us down along with the mountain."

"What!?" Lusamine's eyes widened. "How awful! I can't believe they'd try something so evil…!"

"You really can't underestimate how far they're willing to go." Marcus crossed his arms. "But at the very least, we were able to rescue the Shadow Pokémon they had and we've captured two of them. So we were able to reduce their firepower. The next time we encounter them, we can't let them get away again."

"I see. So the mission was only somewhat successful." Faba nodded in understanding. "Regardless, now that their base of operations has been destroyed, I doubt they have very many places to hide in Alola now. It's only a matter of time until they're caught once again."

"That's what we were saying too!" Ash said. "They won't escape us!"

"Their chance of success will be 0%-roto!" Rotom chimed.

"That's a positive attitude." Wicke said with a slight smile. "But all of you have been fighting very hard. You deserve some rest."

"It's like, 10AM or something…" Elizabeth yawned. "And I feel like we've been in a heated battle all day. I'm going back to bed."

"We did have extremely close calls today…." Lana rubbed her arm. Today was a bit too exciting for her tastes. Plus Mallow had mostly been silent since they finished fighting and she was worried about her. "We should take the rest of the day off, right Mallow?"

"Huh? Oh yeah…" Mallow spaced out but nodded.

"You've all done a fantastic job. Leave the rest to us." Lusamine said with a slight smile. "We can't let you do all the work. You all relax and we'll contact you again when there's an update."

"You don't have to tell me twice." Elizabeth stretched her arms, yawned, and started to leave. "C'mon…let's nap for a week."

"Ready to go home, Moon?" Ash asked. "I'm sure Kukui and Burnet are going to be happy to hear what you did."

"Yeah, let's go. I had to wake up so suddenly, I didn't get to sleep as long as I wanted." Just as everyone was starting to depart, Moon looked over her shoulder towards Lillie. "…See you later?"

"Mhm." Lillie nodded. "See you later, Moon."

Everyone departed, leaving Lillie and Gladion at Aether. Lusamine watched the interaction with Moon, now hugging her daughter even tighter than before. "Oh! You two are growing close now! I'm so happy for you, LILLIE!"

"Ack!" Lillie's green eyes widened comically as she now failed to pry her mother off her. Gladion, Faba, and Wicke just watched - the former trying not to smile too much. "Mother, please! You can release me now!"

.

.

It had been a long day against Cipher. They lost two of their members and nearly every Shadow Pokémon they had under their belt. Despite that, the battle against them was far from over. They may have gone into hiding, but it would not have been much longer until they were caught. That was one problem to deal with another day…but another issue wouldn't waste any time appearing on the horizon. An Ultraworm Hole opened up somewhere on Ula'Ula Island shortly after the confrontation with Cipher. It was night time now so not many people would have noticed…

Four people clad in strange suits dropped down from the Ultra Wormhole as it closed behind them. Most of their bodies were covered by their suits, but three of them were all and had purple hair, while there was a shorter one with an orange ponytail. Two men, two women. "Huh. Looks exactly the same." The shorter female said, taking a look around.

"No surprise there…" One of them men said, stroking his mustache. "It's nearly identical. But I wonder if it's identical in content as well…"

"There's only one way to find out. We have a mission to do." The taller woman said. "Where do we begin, Dulse? Alola is quite large…she could be anywhere."

"That is correct!" The one known as Dulse said. "We were tasked with hunting her down, and we must do so before the one who consumes light finds its way to this land as well, along with those of Team Rainbow Rocket. The Ultra Recon Squad will not fail this mission!"

.

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Part 2: End


	45. Chapter 45: Jigglypuff's Lullaby

It had been one day since the battle with Cipher on Mt. Lanakila. Team Rocket returned to their tree base on Melemele thanks to Bewear saving them from the crumbling avalanche. As a reward for a battle hard fought, Bewear was feeding Team Rocket delicious honey. "Kyuun." And it did this by stuffing her hand into their mouths. A bit forceful, but the elated expressions they all made when receiving the honey made it all worth it. "Ahhh…nothing like coming back to delicious honey." James mused with a happy smile.

"It almost makes worth kickin' Cipher butt worth it!" Meowth beamed.

Speaking of that, they had yet to report the incident back to base. Jessie was thinking about it, but at the same time, the instant she thought of Matori answering the call, she scowled. "Ghh…I really don't want to report what happened to her. She'll be all like "oh, you failed to catch Cipher? Shame on you for dishonoring Giovanni's name! That four eyed witch…!"

James and Meowth began to sweat. They were fine with Giovanni's secretary, but Jessie was the only one with a problem towards her and had no issues hiding it. That made things a bit awkward. "We should probably report before they ask us for one…" James said while sitting up. It wouldn't do well to make HQ wait for them.

And just as James thought this, there was a loud ringing upstairs. They knew what that meant. "…Looks like they're done waitin'…!" Meowth said as he scrambled up the latter.

"Ooh, if she says anything…!" Jessie grumbled, crawling up the latter with James behind her. Once arriving to the second floor, Jessie answered the video call, and naturally…

"We've been waiting for your report." It was Matori who answered, but Giovanni was in the background.

"Ah! Giovanni!' Jessie, James, and Meowth saluted at the sight of Giovanni, though it was Matori who was doing the talking.

"You claimed that you would battle Cipher yesterday. Did you, or did you not pursue that endeavor?" Matori asked, staring at the three Rocket grunts.

"Did you or did you not pursue that endeavor…" Jessie repeated Matori's words in a mocking tone, but it was James who quickly placed his hands over her mouth. "Mmmm!"

"Yes, we did in fact battle Cipher! We were unable to ascertain their goals, however." James explained. "In an act of desperation to escape from us, they attempted to destroy Mt. Lanakila! We escaped from their last ditch effort, but had two of their members arrested in the process!" It wasn't a lie. Not the entire truth, but Giovanni only needed to know that they were involved.

"Impressive…" Giovanni said while stroking his chin. "A shame they were able to escape, though an organization on its last legs would flee when defeat is imminent."

"They won't be able to run from the shame of trying to escape Team Rocket!" Meowth saluted.

"I see." Matori adjusted her glasses. "And what of the Shadow Pokémon Cipher had in store? Were you able to capture them?"

"Ah…" That was a hard question to answer. Bewear pulled them out so soon, that they were unable to learn what Ash and his friends planned to do with all those Shadow Pokémon. "They may have fallen into the hands of the International Police. They were there on the scene as well." James hastily answered.

"An unfortunate loss." Matori answered. "If we had more members stationed in Alola, we may have been able to retrieve them."

Jessie, of course, too this the wrong way. "Is that an insult four ey-!?" And she was being muted once again by James.

"W-Worry not! Cipher has very little resources left to combat with! The next time we cross paths with them, they will fall to Team Rocket's might!"

"Meowth, that's right!" Meowth said. "Oh, right…we have one more thing to report that you might want to hear."

"What is it?" Giovanni asked curiously.

"There is a girl who comes from another world! Her name is Moon." Jessie said. There was no point in hiding her existence from Giovanni. Team Rocket saw for themselves what her existence in this Alola had done to Cipher's plans, and their own, numerous times. It was important that they be prepared.

"Another world? And Team Rainbow Rocket is from another world as well." Giovanni was connecting the dots rather quickly, which painted an interesting picture. "Well well…it seems like things are about to get worthwhile soon. I wonder what the bigger picture is for all of this…"

.

.

Melemele Island retained its usual atmosphere. The only thing that was different about it were the four strange people clad in odd suits wandering around the area. Zossie, Dulse, Soilera, and Phyco were tasked by the Lusamine of another world to find Moon. Naturally, the first place they looked was the location where Moon's house would be. Unfortunately, no such place existed, causing their investigation to hit a dead end as soon as it began. "Well, this is a problem." Zossie said, rocking back and forth. "We have absolutely no idea where to start."

"Surely the Professor of this Alola should know, yes?" Dulse questioned.

"Already tried." Soliera let out a sigh. "No one was home."

"That's no reason for us to not sit and wait for them to return." Phyco said while stroking his mustache. But that remark only got him looks from other members of the squad.

"Dude. We can't just sit and wait in front of someone's house. We were taught how weird that is." Zossie said. "We're at a standstill."

"She has a point." Dulse nodded. "We simply have to keep searching. If anything, this Alola seems much brighter than the other one. I feel the presence of the Radiant One…it's been here before."

"One of them." Soliera made that important distinction. "One closely tied to this Alola. But the one that consumed the light of our world…it's still on the move. It's only a matter of time until it finds this vibrant light."

"What are we gonna do in that instance? Are we just going to leave this world to fall?" Zossie asked.

"Our mission is to find Moon and bring her back to her world." Phyco said. "What befalls this world is none of our concern. We simply must stop Team Rainbow Rocket from spreading their influence beyond this world. For that, we need to bring Moon back to finish the battle." His tone was a little cold. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing that could be done for this world except nip the bud at the source.

"A little cold, but I understand. We can't help everyone." Zossie pouted. "But man…this won't be easy. If we can't find her on Melemele, I have no idea where to start looking."

"The best solution would be to split into teams, like before." Dulse suggested. "Zossie and I will begin a search together, while Phyco and Soliera should search in a pair. We'll cover more ground this way. This Alola, while similar to the previous, is also different. While there is light, I also sense darknesss…"

"Very well." Soliera could not complain about this. "Hold on, Moon. We'll bring you back soon, kicking and screaming if we have to."

.

.

Moon, Lillie, and Ash were riding in Lillie's limo, heading towards her house where the others were waiting. Moon suddenly sneezed, causing the others to look at her. "Achoo…!"

"Bless you!" Lillie gave a slight smile, placing her hands in her lap, where Snowy was sitting. "Are you alright, Moon? You didn't catch a cold on Mt. Lanakila, did you? You did shift environments fast…"

"Based on how fast she arrived, it would not be out of the realm of possibility-roto." Rotom added.

Moon waved her hands, giving Lillie a smile. "No no! I'm fine! I think someone was just talking about me." She shrugged. "But I'm really excited to see your house! Ash said it was huge."

"It is!" Ash spread his arms out and his Pikachu followed suit. "There's a place to battle, the mansion is big, there are plenty of Pokémon who hang out. It's awesome!"

"I guess I'll see soon." Moon nodded with an excited grin. She was slowly feeling a lot more integrated with the group lately and it showed with her mood. Soon enough, the limo pulled into Lillie's home and Moon's eyes widened. "It is huge!"

"Told you!" Ash grinned. The limo came to a stop and Homs stepped out, opening the door for Lillie and her friends to come out.

"Welcome." The butler said with a curt bow.

"Ah, Lillie, you're here!" Lana grinned. She, Mallow, Marcus, and the others had been waiting for Lillie to pick up Ash and Moon.

"I cannot get over how big this place is…" Marcus said while looking around.

"I think she's got as much money as I do…" Takeba said.

"Her mother runs a Pokémon Reserve, of course she's loaded!" Elizabeth shouted. She had rich friends and it made her feel out of place. While the trainers talked, they let all their Pokémon out to converse and play with one another. That's when she pointed to an asleep Kiawe and Sophocles. "But before that, we have a problem…"

"What happened to them…?" Moon asked.

"It seems as though they've been put to sleep." Scott surmised. "A Pokémon must've arrived before we did."

"How do you figure it was a Pokémon?" Grace tilted her head, moving to turn Kiawe and Sopochles on their backs. That's when she gasped and nearly burst out laughing. On their faces were crude, angry drawings that looked silly. "Pffft…!"

"Oh no…" Mallow's face paled. She knew what that meant. "It was Jigglypuff…!"

"Jigglypuff?" Takeba blinked. "I haven't seen a Jigglypuff in Alola."

"I don't know what they're talking about either." Gladion was off in the corner, close enough to be involved in conversation. "I heard them shout and when I ran outside, they were like this."

"Hey, wake up." Moon nudged Kiawe and Sophocles with her foot. The longer she looked at them, she could feel her lips quiver before she took a deep breath. "Pfft…"

"Ugh…" Kiawe stirred and sat up. "What happened!?"

"Jigglypuff." Lana pointed at his face.

"AWH!?" Kiawe gasped and stood up. He was handed a mirror by Homs and he just sighed. "I didn't even see it coming…! I just heard its voice and before I knew it, I was waking up just now."

"Me too…" Sophocles frowned.

"You two look ridiculous! Ahahahaha!" Takeba was not attempting to hide her laughter at all.

"You look just as ridiculous, and there's no drawing on your face." Elizabeth said with a coy smile.

"H-Hey….!" Takeba whined. She then turned to Marcus. "I don't look silly, right?!"

Why was he getting dragged into this! "O-Of course not!"

"…Pfft…" Moon snickered very quietly. No one heard it.

"Okay guys!" Ash got all the boy's attention. "Let's have some battles! We gotta train up when Cipher attacks! We won't be caught off guard again!"

"I like that plan!" Sophocles said. He didn't want to feel like a liability again.

"What about us?" Grace placed her hands on her hips, feeling excluded.

"If you'd like, we can let them use the arena first." Lillie suggested. "In the meantime, would you all like to help me feed the Pokémon around here?"

"That sounds fun!" Mallow beamed.

"Sounds cute…I don't mind." Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders.

"Oh, I wanna help!" Moon said.

"I guess we have our plan then." Lana already knew exactly where to go. "Let's not keep them waiting.

Lillie was about to follow, then realized she forgotten something. "Oh, wait. I forgot something in my room. You can go on ahead."

"See you in a bit!" Takeba waved while following Lana and the others.

Moon was the only one who stayed with Lillie, feeling a bit awkward from what she wanted to ask. "…Can I see your room? I-I mean…you don't have to let me if you don't want to, I just…"

Lillie smiled, simply walking off while motioning Moon to follow her. "Of course."

.

.

Lillie led Moon to her room. It wasn't anything special as far as she was concerned, but that was also excluding the fact it was pretty lavish compared to most. "Whoa…" Moon was completely taken aback. "It's so cute…! So you, actually."

"O-Oh, it's nothing special." Lillie shook her head. She went into her drawer to grab something.

"It's leagues better than my room! Er, not the room I have now. Then again, it's not really a room, just a couch on a second floor…" Moon started to ramble. She didn't know why. "I wish the house that I lived in existed here, so I could show you. Lillie and I used to play games together sometimes…and I'd like to do that with you. Ah..! If you'd like? Aha…"

Lillie was taken aback, if only because Moon was so chatty. It was taking her a moment to get used to, but she let out a quiet giggle. Moon was becoming a lot more open with her and it made her feel happy. "If we can make that happen one day, I'd like to do that."

"Noted!" Moon grinned. Her eyes then wandered to an old family picture with Lusamine, Gladion, Mohn, and a baby Lillie. "Aw…this picture…"

"Hm?" Lillie glanced to where Moon was looking. "Oh, yeah. I don't remember when this picture was taken. But all I know is that it was taken before…he vanished."

"Ah! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" Moon was about to speak.

"No, it's fine." Lillie shook her head. "I know he's alive somewhere. Magearna told me as much, and I trust in it!" There was a determined fire in her eyes.

"Wow…" Moon recognized that look. "Were you going to look for him…?"

"Mhm. My mother, brother, and I were planning to do that when our vacation began." Lillie explained. "I…actually haven't told the other this yet, but it's likely that this search will take us outside of Alola. I planned to tell them a while ago, but then…"

Moon tilted her head. "But then…?"

"You fell from the sky." Lillie couldn't put it any other way. "We were all going to go to school and share what our goals for the vacation were. But, before we could all gather, we were told a girl had fallen from the sky. And after all that…"

"Oh no. I didn't mean to ruin your plans…" Moon said, as if she had any control over what was happening concerning her circumstances.

"No, it's fine!" Lillie replied, taking one of Moon's hands in her own. "It's a good thing you fell. If we all ended up going our separate ways when we did, who knows what Cipher would be doing to Alola right now. It's a good thing you arrived!"

"You think so?" Moon managed to crack a smile. But she started to find it a little weird. What were the chances she'd hop from one Alola to another, where her sudden existence staved off an evil organization from having their way? It was a pretty lucky coincidence…right…? "Oh, hey. You never told me your dad's name…"

"I didn't?" Lillie thought she had. "His name is Mohn."

"Mohn…" Moon stared up at the ceiling. "Mohn…feels familiar…" Actually, the longer she stared at the picture of Mohn…. "Agh…head hurts…" She winced. While she had most of her memory back, there were still some blank spots here and there. Apparently the subject of Mohn was one of them. "I'm really sorry, Lillie. I think…I used to know something, but I…I can't remember. It hurts when I try to."

Lillie squeezed Moon's hand in a reassuring manner. "It's okay. Don't push yourself, all right?"

"Okay…" Moon gave a soft smile.

.

.

The boys were training hard in the front yard. Gladion and Marcus were up, clashing with Lycanroc and Gallade. Outage and Close Combat caused powerful shockwaves as the two collided against one another continuously. The others watched in anticipation, curious to see which one would come out on top. "Not bad, Gladion…!"

"You aren't too shabby yourself." Gladion replied with a slight smirk. "But we have to be better when we fight Cipher again. Even if they can't get the drop on us like that again, we can't afford to count on the element of surprise again."

"It's true. We only made it out because they weren't aware of Moon." Kiawe hated that. Even though he was more than capable of holding his own against an Admin, it meant nothing in the long run since they were all trapped.

"We know what to do next time." Ash was just as determined as the others. "We'll get stronger and they won't stand a chance!"

"That yields the best outcome." Scott said. "It's all we can do for the moment. But as long as we don't overexert ourselves, we should be all right."

"I worry about Kasumi, but there's nothing we can do for now." Marcus sighed quietly. "The best I can do for her right now is kick Venus to the ground the next time we cross paths."

"And we'll be here to help!" Ash said.

"Next time, we'll win for sure!" Sophocles said. At that moment, a gust of wind blew past them, and with it, a familiar pink creature landed in the middle of all of them: Jigglypuff. "AH!"

"Oh no." Ash's face paled.

"What is that thing?" Gladion questioned.

"WE GOTTA GO!" Kiawe exclaimed.

"Flee, now…!" Scott was turning his back. He didn't need psychic powers to see where this was going.

Jigglypuff wasn't going to wait. It already knew it had an audience and put the microphone in its hand to good use. "Jigglypuff jiggllllly puff~ Jigglypuff jiggly~" It began to sing. While its voice was nice, that was also the issue. Such a powerful Sing amplified caught all of the boys and their ears, hitting them with an intense drowsy spell.

"No way…man down…" Marcus collided, along with everyone else. In a matter of seconds, they were all unconscious, fast asleep.

Jigglypuff blinked once it finished singing. It then grew angry that everyone fell asleep on it AGAIN. So there was only one thing to do: take out its frustration on everything around it. The microphone in its hand was unscrewed to reveal a marker! And it then got to work, defacing everyone who fell asleep by drawing various shapes and markings in black! That would teach them not to fall asleep on it again! "Puff!" Huffing, Jigglypuff was about to leave when…the girls all rushed upon hearing Kiawe's scream.

"What happened?!" Takeba gasped. "They've been…brutalized…!"

"That's the Jigglypuff!" Lana pointed at the Balloon Pokémon. She'd recognize that thing anywhere.

"Wait. I don't like where this is going." Elizabeth took a step back. But it was too late. Jigglypuff had their sights set on them and…started to sing again.

"No way…" Moon was stumbling around. "It's so…peaceful…"

"No, Moon…you mustn't…fall asleep…" Mallow tried to stop it, but it was too late. She was the first to try and the first to fall, passing out instantly on her stomach. Moon, Takeba, Lillie, Elizabeth, and Lana all followed suit, collapsing one after another.

"This…monster…" Grace trudged towards Jigglypuff as it continued to sing, but even she was unable to last very long and collapsed, asleep…

.

.

Some time passed. Who knows how long since everyone was asleep, but they all began to awaken. Gladion rubbed the back of his head, groaning a bit after all that happened. "That was annoying…" When he glanced at the others, he noticed all the horrible drawings. "…You look stupid."

"You're one to talk!" Elizabeth held a mirror in front of him. "You got caught, too!"

"Wh…!?" Gladion's eyes went wide.

"That Jigglypuff is a monster…" Takeba couldn't afford to wipe off the drawings, because it would ruin her makeup.

"You don't look any less of a clown than you usually do." Grace said with a teasing smile. This made Takeba and the others laugh…and then Takeba pouted when she realized it.

"Heeeeey!" The pinkette huffed and turned to Marcus. "I don't look like a clown, do I?!"

"…Right now, we're all clowns. Actually, this is more of a circus…" Marcus shrugged his shoulders.

"It even got me-roto…" Rotom's current emotion was bewilderment and sadness. There was just a giant X along it screen.

"…." Scott had a clown nose drawn on him. He wasn't sure how to feel about this.

Moon was currently in the process of waking up. She lifted her head, yawning as she glanced at everyone else. "….." She had some dumb drawings on her face too, but she was really taking in the situation around her.

"Moon?" Lillie being so close didn't help. She looked utterly ridiculous. Everyone did. It was hard to tell what their otherworldly friend was thinking, though.

"…You guys look so stupid….pfft…" Moon was trying to hold it all in, but she just couldn't. "AHAHAHAHAHAHA! I-IT'S SO FUNNY! LOOK AT YOU GUYS! AHAHAHA!" Moon's sudden laughter caught everyone by surprise. It lasted a few minutes before she finally calmed down. "O-Oh gosh…I-I'm sorry! I…I just couldn't help it…!" When she looked around at everyone's shocked face, she felt nervous. "O-Oh, I…!"

"That's the first time you've laughed." Lillie stated. "That's the first time I've heard you laugh like that since you've been here…"

"Ah…really?" Moon blinked. She didn't even realize it.

"You've had your guard up for a while now, but it's starting to come down." Grace said. "We're glad."

"You're adorable when laughing!" Mallow and Lana said at the same time, which embarrassed Moon.

"You should wear that happy look all the time. It suits you!" Ash stated. The others were agreeing with him. The sudden attention on Moon flustered her, but at the same time, it made her feel happy.

"I-I guess I'm comfortable around you guys enough to laugh like that…ahaha!" She still couldn't take them as seriously with the dumb drawings on their face. It killed the moment, but at the same time, made it better since she was laughing so much.

"…" Gladion felt like an idiot and wiped as much of the marker as he could off his face. But it was nice to hear Moon being positive for a change. "Why did it have to get me involved?"

"Because you fell asleep." Kiawe shuddered. Twice in one day? That Jigglypuff was a menace…

"Well…here's hoping I can laugh a lot more with you guys in the future." Moon stood up. "But seriously…can we do something about all of this? I can't take you guys seriously when you look like you walked right out of clown school."

"You look like you just graduated." Marcus shot.

"Top of the class, thank you very much!" Moon said with confidence, puffing her chest out. The fact she went with it caused the others to laugh as well. And just like that, she was laughing all over again. When she laughed with everyone, with Lillie…it made all her troubles fade away for those few moments. She felt like she had nothing to worry about at all. This feeling?

It was a welcome one. She wanted to laugh even more with everyone…

.

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Next Time: A Different Perspective.


	46. Chapter 46: A Different Perspective

While Ash and his friends were having a good time with one another and training in preparation for their next major battle, the focus now wouldn't be on the trainers bonding with one another. This time, the focus would shift to their Pokémon, who had just as much as a stake in this situation as anyone else. Moon's Pikachu watched as her trainer was finally laughing and enjoying herself with everyone. "Look at her, Kommo-o! She's laughing! She's laughing!"

Kommo-o nodded in response to Pikachu's words. "It's been such a long time since I've seen her laugh like this. Perhaps she is finding her place in this world after all….temporary it may be."

"Pi…" Pikachu lowered her head. The 'temporary' part is what stuck with her.

"What? Did you forget that this Alola is not our own? As nice as it has been, we cannot stay here." Kommo-o stated sagely.

"I know…" Pikachu lowered her head. "But I like everyone here so much…!"

"There's no reason for you not to enjoy your stay here!" That came from Ash's Pikachu. "We're glad that you guys, and Moon, are finally coming around to us!"

"He's right." Dusk Lycanroc gave a gruff nod. "Things have gotten better now. It's good to have you all here."

"Yeah, Kommo-o! There's no need to be a stick in the mud!" Moon's Pikachu huffed, crossing her tiny arms. Defeated, Kommo-o just sighed. It couldn't deny that it was good to see Moon in such high spirits, temporary though it may be.

"…" Silvally remained silent. Almost as if it was on edge. This naturally caught the attention of the other Pokémon. Magearna was the first one to approach it with a curious stare, and so it turned to respond. "I'm all right…I've just been sensing…an otherworldly presence in this world again…"

"Is it Team Rainbow Rocket again!?" Incineroar questioned, letting out a small gruff grunt.

Silvally shook its head. "No…I can't quite discern what it is. But it's not of this world…or Moon's own."

"That's…weird." Sandy wasn't sure what it could be talking about then.

"I sense it too…" Naganadel said while flying around. It wanted to go investigate, since this presence felt oddly familiar. But since it was so far away, it thought it was best to leave it be for the time being.

"For the time being, I'll keep an eye on it. But it doesn't seem to be causing any trouble at the moment." Sivlally explained. "For now, we should be focusing on the immediate issue of Cipher. They were very strong foes…"

"You don't have to tell me." Turtonator admitted. "Even without any special moves, the one Kiawe and I fought was still extremely tough."

"YOU GOT ALL THE ACTION!" Marowak whined, stomping the ground in frustration. "I was waiting for a chance to fight! At least you didn't lose, but I'm still frustrated I didn't get the chance to do anything!" And to vent its anger, Marowak proceeded to head butt Turtonator…but its head got stuck in the hole in Turtonator's chest, causing an awkward situation for the both of them.

"Stop doing that…!" Turtonator whined as the two of them were now stuck together.

Haxorus and Melmetal were in a clash of physical strength, both sides attempting to overpower one another. But when they heard what happened with Marowak and Turtonator, they just stared like everyone else. Someone had to say it, and it would be Haxorus. "…How often does _that_ happen?"

"More often than you'd think…" Rowlet was perched on a tree, dozing off as usual.

"Uh huh. Right." Zangoose would have to do something about it, deciding to be the one to pry Marowak out of Turtonator. "Stop doing it. It's embarrassing everyone."

"BE QUIET!" Marowak groaned.

"Onto more important matters, about Cipher…" Venusuar would be the wise sage to get everyone back on track, despite the shenangians going on. "We can't fail to do our part again. They had the upper hand, as much as I hate to admit it."

"We could've beaten that rotten Venus if that dirty trick didn't happen! GAAAAH!" Salamance suddenly roared in anger. It caused the trainers to glance over at the group of Pokémon with concern.

And Salamance was swiftly stepped on by Tsareena, as a method to keep it quiet. Stomp was a very effective mood when it needed to be. "I understand you're angry, but keep your frustration down! Our trainers are trying to have a good time!"

"Owow! YES MA'AM!" Salamance whined. The others just watched awe as Tsareena silenced the angry dragon.

Tsareena then stepped off of Salamance and sighed. "I felt utterly powerless when fighting with Mallow and Shaymin. We were completely overpowered in that battle. Even knowing we were at our limit, Mallow still tried so hard. If it wasn't for Primarina and the others."

"We were only able to win because you and Shaymin worked so haaaard." Primarina's voice carried a lovely tune as it tried to soothe Tsareena's worries. But Tsareena didn't want to hear it.

"We were too weak." Tsareena boiled it down to that simple fact. "Shaymin and I weren't able to protect Mallow properly. But now…" Tsareena motioned towards Shaymin.

"Hnnnn…!" Shaymin's body was glowing as it was trying to muster up the strength to use Seed Flare. It wasn't making much progress, but…

"Like this…" Next to Shaymin was Ditto, who had taken its form with Transform. Ditto was no better as using Seed Flare than Shaymin, but having the help was them more important part. "When using a move, you have to put all your energy into it! Don't be afraid to hold back!"

"Hnnnnng…!" Shaymin let out a small cry as a few explosive seeds shot out from its body. It wasn't much, bit was making progress.

"Even though Shaymin doesn't officially belong to Mallow, it's doing its hardest to fight for her. We don't want to hold anyone back next time." Tsareena said with a firm nod.

"Cawcaw…" That was Honchkrow, perched upon the same tree as Rowlet. "It's very nice that you've found new resolve, but I could not even imagine _losing ´_to begin with! As much as a bumbling fool as Takeba is, we were able to defeat our foe with _flying _colors!"

"Honchkrow, we talked about this…!" Blastoise just knew that Honchkrow was going to use this chance to antagonize Tsareena.

"Having resolve is nice, but how far will it get you when the moment counts? If you have to fight the same person again, are you confident you'd be able to win?" Honchkrow questioned Tsareena. It was clearly antagonizing her.

"Hey, back off," Midnight Lycanroc said, red eyes glaring up at Honchkrow. "They were all doing their best."

"And it wasn't quite good enough now was it!?" Honchkrow laughed. Someone had to be the jerk of the group and Honchkrow proudly took that role. No wonder it was fond of pecking Takeba at random, he just liked causing problems.

Now that Marowak was free from Turtonator, he was waving his bone around wildly. "Your best wasn't enough to beat me, you stupid bird!"

"I can beat you without my trainer!" Honchkrow shouted.

"Please ignore him." Blastoise sighed. "He likes to instigate. Don't take it personally."

"Carried by his trainer." Galarian Darmanitan said.

"Totally. We're all friends here! No reason to be a jerk about it." Darmanitan followed up.

"Can't relate." Zoroark snickered.

Gallade was mostly silent through the entire conversation. Thinking about fighting Venus made him think about Kasumi. As such he felt the need to voice his thoughts. "I'm still concerned about Kasumi's wellbeing. I am glad we were able to return Dragonite to her, but still…"

"It must be difficult to see an old friend like that…" Luxray sighed quietly. "When I heard what had happened, I could not help but feel bad."

"Kasumi…the girl with amnesia? She reminds me of Moon in a way." Moon's Pikachu chimed in. "She still doesn't have all her memory back. I think she's still afraid of her what she can't remember."

"There's only so much we can do…" Snowy turned to glance at Moon and Lillie. "But Lillie looks so happy with Moon now, and vice versa. So I think it's okay for now. Things will turn up…!"

"Snowy's right!" Ash's Pikachu nodded.

"No need to be worried on the small stuff…" Rowlet was sleep talking. It was peacefully perched upon the tree branch next to Honchkrow, who was so very tempted to knock it off to startle it.

"I do have one more remaining question." Dusk Lycanroc gestured to Xatu, who was unmoving, staring up towards the sun. "What is Xatu doing?"

"Oh, it always does this." Darmanitan said. "Stares up into the sky, readin' the future and all."

"Xatu can do that? That's neat." Zoroark said, waving its arm in front of Xatu's face to get its attention. "What are you seeing now?"

"…" Xatu did not respond.

"Uh…" Everyone stared at Xatu. They had just met it, but it was clearly being unresponsive.

Galarian Darmanitan was a bit lost as well. "Xatu?"

"…A great calamity is encroaching upon this world." Xatu finally spoke and it gave some very heavy words.

"What!? You can't just drop news like that…!" Sandy barked. "What does that mean…!?"

"From where!? If it's Rainbow Rocket or Cipher, I'll crush 'em…!" Incineroar bellowed.

"…It is not from this world. Nor is it from Moon's world." Xatu explained. "But it comes from the space between worlds. A great darkness will soon swallow Alola and the world, leaving it abandoned in the depths of nothingness.

"Now it's the time for jokes." Haxorus grumbled.

"This is no joke. This is a glimpse of the future I have seen. If we are unable to stop it along with our trainers…then you will no longer see light." Xatu was calm while delivering this news. "It is doubtful that Scott has not sensed this already as well. But…it is difficult to bring up out of the blue."

"Okay, how do we stop that?" Venusaur questioned. They needed answers.

"We cannot." Xatu replied.

"What do you mean we can't!?" Charizard shouted.

Gladion's Umbreon and Zoroark were also listening into this conversation. They looked at one another before looking at Xatu. "We can't stop it..?" Umbreon repeated.

"While the future is uncertain…there is one thing abundantly clear. There will be a world of darkness." That turned the mood around entirely. Xatu was the sudden bearer of bad news and body knew how to react to this. The psychic bird turned around to face everyone. "It is coming."

.

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Within the depths of Ultra Space, a black, prism Pokémon tirelessly flew about, searching desperately for light to consume. Necrozma moved between worlds on its own free will, consuming what light it could. It was still quite a ways from its own location, but the Pokémon did set its sights on one Alola. It was vibrant with light…and it needed that light no matter what the cost…

.

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Next Time: A Tale of Survival.


	47. Chapter 47: A Tale of Survival

Po Town was as dreary as ever. The never ending rain on Team Skull's turf oddly fit the mood for once. Kasumi was inside the mansion, watching Toxapex and Dragonite interact with each other for the first time. It wasn't going all that well, either. They were barking at each other and she hardly had control over the situation. "D-Dragonite, calm down…! Toxapex, what's the issue!?" She was getting a few looks from passing Team Skull members.

"This has been happening the last few days…" Tupp watched the chaos while scratching his head. "Come on, K! Can't control your own Pokémon?"

Kasumi immediately cut her eyes towards Tupp. "It's Kasumi, first off. And secondly, shut up! It's none of your business."

"Oh, that's right…you got a real name now." Rupp blinked. "It's gonna take a little getting' used to! But we can try."

"But seriously, it's getting a little worryin' watching those two fight." Zipp said. "You gotta do something about it."

"Don't you think I'm trying!?" Kasumi groaned. "I don't think they like each other very much. I'm not really sure how to fix that." At the very least, Dragonite and Toxapex stopped arguing and just turned away from one another. It was only temporary, but it would have to do. "Ugh…it's one thing after another recently."

"Ya know what'll make you feel better? Comin' to Melemele with us and one upping that Ilima!" Tupp said with a smile under his scarf.

"That's your rivalry and I'm not touching it." Kasumi huffed while returning Dragonite and Toxapex.

"You sound just like Plumeria." Tupp groaned. "You're lucky she's the one who found you, otherwise I don't think she'd care about you nearly as much…!"

"You're just upset because she doesn't like you." Kasumi stuck her tongue out, though considering she had her scarf on, that couldn't be seen. "And I can see why."

"Hey, you take that back!" Rupp and Zipp stood next to their leader, both fuming at her words.

"Don't feel like it." Kasumi waved a hand and yawned. "It's getting late anyway, so I'm turning in." She left, just like that, leaving the Team Skull trio with her cold words.

"Ghh, she's totally getting special treatment! It ain't fair!" Tupp groaned.

Plumeria was watching from around the corner. She shook her head, deciding to shed a little light on the situation, plus she really didn't like Tupp and his little gang. "I'm treating her no different than I would anyone else. You guys are just a bunch of dummies who're stupider than the rest…so having to watch over you guys is a pain. Plus, she's been pretty tame and fits right in. You could stand to learn a thing or two." And with that, she walked off, leaving Tupp in shock.

"This so ain't fair…" Tupp sulked.

.

.

Plumeria then went to go visit Guzma. He was busy training with his Scizor and Golisopod in the rain. It didn't bother him so much. The leader of Team Skull could tell that Plumeria was nearby, but didn't bother to turn around just yet. "So, how're things with the newbie?" Guzma asked as Scizor and Golisopod clashed with one another. "Heard she ran off the other day."

"Yeah…" Plumeria let out a heavy sigh. "She's a handful, but she's gotten her name and some of her memory back. Turns out she really is friends with the Alola Champ and his crew of goody two shoes."

"Hah!" Guzma just let out a laugh at that. "Well, ain't that somethin'? They try to bring her back?"

"Yeah, but she didn't want to go, and I made sure they wouldn't take her. No one messes with a member of Team Skull after all." Plumeria responded.

"That's right. Someone has to keep an eye over these numbskulls." Guzma then turned around, hands in his pockets. "Where'd she go, right on to the mountain?"

"Yup…" Plumeria sighed. "She's even more of a handful than the others, but she's probably safer with us than anything. Those goody two shoes are fightin' a battle that hardly concerns us."

"The only thing that would get me involved is if a member of Team Skull was in danger." Guzma admitted. "But if that were to happen, I'd gladly show the idiot who thought they had a bright idea why it wasn't so good."

Plumeria's lips curled up into a grin from those words. "Now you're talkin' Guzma. I'll be with you every step of the way."

Gumza smirked Plumeria's way. He then lifted his head into the cloudy sky, a brow lifting for a moment. He thought he saw a crack in the sky, but that didn't make any sense. Perhaps he was just seeing things. "Aight. The day's pretty much over. Gonna call it here." The boss of Team Skull returned his two Pokémon and went back inside, but not before staring up at that sky one more time. He knew he saw something there, but it hardly made any sense to him. Oh well, no point on dwelling on it too much.

.

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It was the dead of night. Kasumi was sound asleep, but she was having a dream…no, it was more like a memory. A memory that didn't entirely make sense to her, but at the same time, it felt like she was reliving that moment. That moment of being faced in a do or die situation on Cipher's ship. The faces around her were a blur, she couldn't entirely remember but it all felt familiar, and she was the only one who could save them. _"Even times when I'm afraid, I won't let my courage fade. That's the promise you and I have made." _After that, everything just went dark.

[Flash back]

How much time had passed since that explosion? Kasumi had no idea. Everything went dark after she uttered a few words. She was barely conscious, drifting about in the ocean with a half dead look in her eyes. One eye had turned red from excessive amount of Shadow Power her body had used, while her cheek was cut from some debris. The only reason she was even alive was due that same power creating a sort of cocoon around her body. It was a last ditch effort unconscious effort to save herself, but as a result, that explosion had wiped away everything she knew. "…."

At that time, Plumeria and Guzma were near the coast of Route 17. Plumeria happened to notice something drifting towards them slowly. "…What's that?"

"A pokemon?" Guzma shrugged. But upon closer inspection… "Wait, looks like a person? How the…?" Soon enough, Kasumi washed up on shore and as soon as she did, that darkness faded around her. "Whoa…"

"Ugh….." Kasumi groaned. She was alive somehow. But she had clearly seen better days.

"We can't just leave her like this." Plumeria said while lifting Kasumi up. They may have been ruffians, but they weren't monsters. "She looks awful, what the heck happened to her!?"

"Beats me…but stayin' out here probably ain't too good for her." Guzma shrugged, deciding it was best to take Kasumi back to their HQ.

.

Kasumi didn't full regain consciousness for what seemed like a few days. Guzma and Plumeria were looking out for her, though they hadn't the slightest idea what to do aside from basic first aid. Her condition was far beyond their understanding and no one in Alola would be able to help either. Nobody would really help Team Skull anyway, given their reputation. "Ugh…where…?" Kasumi sat up, glancing around the unfamiliar space.

"You're in Po Town." Guzma explained. "Home of Team Skull. Hope that ain't problem for ya."

"Huh?" Kasumi tilted her head, clearly confused. "What's a Team Skull?"

Plumeria rolled her eyes. A different approach was needed. "So, what's your name? You just sort of washed up on shore with no explanation."

"My name…?" A total blank. Kasumi shook her head. "I…I don't remember my name. I…I think it started with a K?"

Plumeria and Guzma looked at each other. This wasn't good. "Hm…guess we'll just have to call you that, then." Guzma said. "Until you can remember. But you probably don't want to be around a group like us."

"Why not?" Kasumi's deadpanned look held curiosity, somehow. "…You guys didn't have to help me, but you did. So you're not bad. Would you…let me stay here a bit? Until I can…function? I feel really tired…" And just like that, Kasumi passed out again. The toll her body experienced too much for any normal human to bear. There were even black sparks briefly dancing around her.

"…What did we get ourselves into?" Plumeria groaned quietly. That was only the beginning of Kasumi's membership with Team Skull…

[End flash back.]

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Before Kasumi's dreams could tell her more, she woke up. She lied on her back, staring up at the dark ceiling with a heavy sigh. Everything was so cluttered and it hardly made sense. "Ugh…that one dream again. What does it mean? What did I do…?"

.

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Team Rocket's HQ. Giovanni was looking over some older files concerning Cipher. If they planned to be somewhat of a threat once again, he was wondering how to use their Shadow Power to their advantage. There were so many possibilities if the three stationed in Alola could pull through. "I can foresee a few plans already…"

That's when Matori stepped into his office, panting a bit. "S-Sir! You…you have a visitor."

"A visitor?" Giovanni didn't turn around. "Tell them I am not accepting visitors at this time."

"But sir…!" Matori started.

"I wouldn't take guests either." The voice came from behind Matori.

Upon hearing the voice, Giovanni turned around. At first he was surprised to see…himself standing right across from him. The only difference between them was the rainbow RR emblazoned on his chest. "…So, you must be the leader of Team Rainbow Rocket. Giovanni." The Persian that usually sat on his lap hissed.

RR Giovanni simply nodded. "Indeed. Making my way to this world was a bit difficult at first. But I had to see if there was a Team Rocket in this one as well."

"How did you…" Matori began.

"I believe I already told you, but I can somewhat move about at will. It's not as effective as opening an Ultra Wormhole and passing through, but it gets the job done. There's someone in this world who has something that I need…so I was wondering if you'd like to join forces."

Giovanni paused before letting out a slight scoff. "You're me, so you should know full well how I feel about this. This world is only big enough for one Team Rocket and one Giovanni. You'll have to return to the world you came from. The Rocket Empire in this world is mine to establish and mien alone."

RR Giovanni grinned. That was precisely the reaction he was expecting from another version of himself. "Well put. I don't intend to stay on your territory for much longer, but I must encroach and take back what I need."

"You won't be staying for long indeed." Giovanni responded. "Rainbow Rocket is giving my Team Rocket a bad name. I've already issued an order to eliminate imposters and I don't intend to take it back."

"Imposters? That's a humorous thought. But there's nothing you need to worry about. Once I'm done with my mission here, the world will think that Team Rocket is even more fearsome than they once thought. You'll be thanking me for leaving a good impression." With one hand in his pocket, RR Giovanni started to walk off. "But if you intend to battle my organization with your own, I welcome the challenge. I don't mind adding this world to the Rainbow Rocket Empire. If you're curious to where I'm going…I'm planning to visit the Aether Foundation. Should you wish to assist my efforts or not is entirely up to you. If anyone has information on what I need, it will no doubt be this world's Lusamine." With that, he was gone.

"…" Matori felt like collapsing. Two Giovannis in the same room was not good for this secretary.

Giovanni turned back around, the smile on his lips never fading. "I won't stand for an intruder on my world. Team Rocket, prepare for battle. The Aether Foundation is waiting for us." If RR Giovanni thought things would be that simple, he had another thing coming. "I'll be the one to expand the Rocket Empire between this world and the next. Not even another version of myself can stop me."

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Next Time: Their Next Step.


	48. Chapter 48: Their Next Step

It was time for some interrogation. Days after the incident on Mt. Lanakila, Folly and Reath had been taken in by Officer Jenny and Nanu respectively. The two members of Cipher had been arrested and now the officers planned to get more information out of them. Nanu sat in a chair, his lazy expression vaguely seriously, while Officer Jenny leaned on the table, staring at the two Cipher members. "Start talking." Jenny demanded.

Reath was entirely dismissive, kicking her feet up on the table, cuffed hands resting behind her head. "Okay, so. The food here wasn't the worst thing I've ever had. I wish you wouldn't separate me from my Pokémon, but I guess I can understand why you'd do that. And…"

"…That's not what we're talking about and you know it." Nanu sighed. No surprise that they were planning to be difficult from the very start. Of course he'd have to be involved in this too, but there was no point in complaining about it now. When he had to do his job, he would see it through to the end. "What's Cipher planning and where are the rest of them?"

Folly and Reath looked at each other. Folly was the first one to speak and he shrugged his shoulders. "Well, to be completely honest…I have no idea where they were. You see, I was kidna…not around when they vanished." He was still bitter about his defeat by Moon. That girl ruined their carefully laid plan by just existing. "So yeah! I don't know a thing!"

"Me neither. They could be anywhere in Alola by now. We only had the one base, which was destroyed, so…." The woman shrugged. "And on top of that, literally every single Shadow Pokémon Miror B stole from Kalos was there too! And if I'm not mistaken, they're now in the hands of the International Police, right!?"

Jenny looked at Nanu. "Is this true?"

"Yeah, to an extent." Nanu nodded, letting out a quiet sigh. "Members Lovrina and Rui were able to bring back a large majority of the Shadow Pokémon within Cipher's HQ. The only Pokémon they weren't able to recover were those on the hands on the Admins who escaped. So there are likely no less than 10 Shadow Pokémon still active."

"Dang…" Folly groaned. "Ein really risked everything we had just to get rid of those kids and their friends. It almost worked too! Curse that dumb girl…! I really didn't want to sleep in a jail cell again."

"This could have been avoided." Jenny shook her. She would not be giving Folly any quarter. "But this is the result of your own actions. I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to reflect on them behind bars."

"Ugh…not again…!" Reath groaned.

"Come on, you two." Officer Jenny began to escort Folly and Reath out. She believed they got all they could out of them.

But that's when Nanu stood up. "Hold on. We're not done."

"Huh?" Jenny turned to Nanu. "What do you mean? They've answered…"

"They ignored the first question by answering honestly to the second." Nanu saw through that ploy, causing the two members of Cipher to sweat. "Even if you don't know where they are, you should have plenty idea of what they plan to do. They may have lost most of their resources, but that doesn't mean they aren't planning something. Isn't that right?"

Folly gulped. They managed to fool Jenny, but Nanu was a completely different beast, far too perceptive for their good. "Uh! W-We dunno anything about that."

"Anything Ein had planned likely went up in flames after he, ya know, blew the base up." Reath rolled her eyes. Folly's stuttering would get them caught. "He doesn't have anything to really make a comeback with. Not anything we'd know of, anyway." That was a half-truth. Ein still had one trump card up his sleeve, but it wasn't anything that the likes of Folly or Reath would know of, so they honestly couldn't tell these officers anything.

"…." Nanu remained silent, his tired expression reading Folly and Reath. He couldn't prove they didn't know anything else. The half-truth was effective enough in getting him to relent for the time being. "Fine. Take 'em away." Jenny did just that, leaving Nanu alone in the room, hands sliding into his pockets. "One thing after another, I swear…"

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Poni Island. A land filled with vast wilderness and hardly any civilization. Most came to this island to train or challenge the Kahuna, Hapu. But there were others who didn't wish to be here at all. Most notably… "UGGGGGGH." Venus groaned loudly while gently hitting her head against a cave wall. "Have I mentioned how much I hate this place?"

"Maybe once. Or twice…or 50 times." Ferma filed her nails. This was their best place of refuge after their unfortunate retreat at Mt. Lanakila.

"Why did we have to come HERE!?" Venus' hair was frizzled and unkempt. Without a large mirror she could hardly keep her appearance up to her usual standards and it was absolutely killing her."

"This was the safest place to escape to." Ein explained, arms crossed. He had a small computer, which held all the files from the HQ. He had been holding onto them for a while. "There are hardly any people. Only the Island Kahuna, which we can easily take care of in the event she wishes to pose a problem to us."

"But there is no CIVILIZATION!" Venus huffed. "We can't go to the Pokémon Center to freshen up, it's killing me! I haven't showered in days and I'm dying."

"Ah, who needs to shower every day?" Dakim waved a hand. Venus and Ferma immediately gave him a look.

"…I was wondering what smelled like a dying Stuntank…" Ferma pinched the bridge of her nose. She couldn't last like this for very much longer. "This is ridiculous, Ein. Was it really a good idea to ditch everything we had on us? I don't even think that plan worked. I heard Mt. Lanakila ended up with minor damages thanks to a group of people."

"Our dance is far from over." Miror B said confidently. "Unfortunate that Folly and Reath were unable to keep up to the pace of this dance, but we'll simply have to move on without them."

"So we're leaving them behind?" Ferma frowned a bit. Reath was her friend after all…

"Man…" Trudly sighed, rubbing the back of his head. He and Folly were close, so having to abandon him made him feel bad. "Are you sure…?"

"They are liabilities at the moment." Nascour said with his arms crossed. "For the time being, it is best to let them sit in prison. We do not have the means for another jailbreak. We only have a few Shadow Pokémon at our disposal."

"Pretty unfavorable position." Gorigan grunted. "And here we are, hiding away in some cave like the criminals we are. So what are we gonna do?"

"This is a low point for the organization, but it is far from the end. I will not have my last appearance be tarnished by my defeat at that child's hands…" Ardos was still bitter about his loss to Gladion. "Our entire plan was derailed by a single person. An unforeseen event."

"I know." Ein was the most bitter about it all. A carefully laid plan was brought to ruin by a single girl who did not exist in this Alola. He hated to admit that he simply had no way to counteract Moon's appearance. She ruined everything. "But it is not a total loss. It is as I said before, even if we have lost the Shadow Pokémon we had, it does not mean we have lost the means to create."

On that cue, Miror B held up several tubes containing Shadow Power. "We still plenty of Shadow Power left to use! This could be enough to maybe get a single one of those Island Guardians, maybe?"

"Too soon for that. If we were to attempt to fight one now, we would most certainly lose." Ardos shook his head. "I've heard stories of their power. Even with what we wield at our disposal, it stands to reason that we would be defeated."

"UGH! So what do we do, then!?" Venus groaned. "It sounds like we barely have any options, which is absolutely terrible. Honestly, Ein, you should've thought out that last ditch effort some more. But no, you always have to get the last word in! I should've been leading this operation, I at least know what I want to do!"

"Hey Venus, we don't like this anymore than you do. But can you put a sock in it already?" Gorigan sighed. Venus' complaining was giving him a headache.

"Why don't you make me, you walking Primape!? " Venus growled. This whole situation was bad for all of them. The tensions were rising since they were unaware of their next step. They had only been talking in circles for a while now, making no progress.

"Ugh. This is hardly going anywhere." Dakim shook his head. "We wouldn't be in this situation if that girl from another world didn't show up. Seriously, how 'n the hell did that even happen? How does a person even come from another world? What does that even mean!?"

"…!" Ein had a flash of inspiration from Dakim's words, ironically enough. Something he didn't even think about. "…Another world. Yes. That's it. I know exactly what it is we should be doing next. Even if our first plan fell through, I just remembered that we have a plan B in store."

"A plan B?" Ferma raised a brow curiously. "And what exactly is this Plan B you have in store?"

"The girl who interrupted our plan came from another world, as we've made clear numerous times already." Ein began, standing up properly while beginning to pace around. "The why isn't important. But it is the 'how' that we should focus on. How did someone from another world end up here? That is simple. You recall my mention of Ultra Wormholes, do you not?"

"Vaguely." Dakim shrugged casually.

Ein sighed. He shouldn't be relying on Dakim for brainpower and he knew it. "Ultra Wormholes lead to numerous worlds, some akin to our very own. There could be a world where Venus is in fact leading the Cipher operation, or a world where we've already succeeded back in Kalos. The potential is truly limitless."

"And where are you going with this exactly?" Gorigan scratched his head. "You sayin' we should find one of those Ultra Wormholes? That feels impossible unless we're unrealistically lucky."

"You're right, it is impossible under normal circumstances." This is when Ein started to grin as if he'd come upon the best idea ever. "But I know of a place that should be able to help us. You recall the blonde boy and girl among those Ultra Guardians do you not? They are the children of the president of the Aether Foundation."

"What's that even mean for us?" Trudly questioned. Ein was beating around the bush so trying to follow his logic was a bit difficult.

"Just spit it out! Stop trying to be cool and cryptic!" Venus huffed.

"Fine." Ein shook his head. They couldn't appreciate a good build up. "The Aether Foundation is clearly aware of the existence of Ultra Wormholes. No doubt they've had to quell the beasts that have stumbled into this world as well. The question then becomes, how did they do that? It's simple. They have a machine that can open up Ultra Wormholes at will. That is our key to victory."

Miror B then held up one of the aforementioned tubes. "So you're saying if I boogie my way to that machine and fiddle with it properly…?"

"You're catching on." Ein chuckled. "This is precisely the card we need to turn the battle. The Aether Foundation is a Pokémon Reserve. Even if push comes to shove, they have plenty of Pokémon we can use there as well. If we strike fast, they won't even have the chance to prepare."

"I like this plan!" Venus clasped her hands together. "I want to have a talk with that Lusamine lady! She has two kids and looks like _that_!? I need to know her secret."

"The Aether Foundation holds the key to our victory. So be it." Nascour started to walk out. "There is no time to waste. We must strike now."

"I agree." Ein adjusted his shades, the sinister twinkle returning to them. If a person from another world was going to hinder their plans, there was no reason they couldn't flip the script, and have other creatures from other worlds aid them in their plan. "To the Aether Foundation. Our plan continues anew from there."

.

.

Ultra Alola. Lillie had been practicing with the Pokémon Moon had unwillingly left behind. She was preparing for a battle against Team Rainbow Rocket. The idea of fighting without Moon had her frightened, but it was all for the sake of getting Moon back. "The Ultra Recon Squad said they would look for her. But I can't wait for them to come back…Rainbow Rocket hasn't done anything yet…"

"Lillie…" Lusamine tentatively approached her daughter. Their relationship was still a bit strained, to put it lightly, but the shared goal of defeating Rainbow Rocket and returning Moon home put them on common ground. "I have some news from Faba."

"Faba!?" Lillie turned around, looking rather displeased. "This situation is his fault to begin with…! He's the one who…!"

"I know." Lusamine nodded. "But I've kept him on an extremely tight leash. Unfortunately, Aether cannot do without his talents…but I refuse to allow him to go scott free after the situation has spiraled so horribly, which is why I've forced him to stay at within the Foundation and keep us up to date with accurate information. I know when he's lying, so he won't be able to lead anyone into a trap."

Lillie was still apprehensive about this. "…I don't trust him anymore."

"I figured you might say that. That is why this information he's delivered can be verified by Wicke." Lusamine exclaimed. "According to Faba, Giovanni has left and has taken a sizeable number of Rainbow Rocket grunts along with him into an Ultra Wormhole. Their current base of operations is currently vulnerable."

Lillie's eyes lit up. "Wait…is that true!?"

"What's all this commotion…?" Guzma scratched his head. All the yelling outside caught his attention.

"We have to move, now!" Lillie's voice was so assertive; it took the two adults off guard. "I'll have to grab Hau first, he can help…and…!"

"Whoa, you're movin' pretty fast kid. Slow down." Guzma didn't even know what was going on.

"Team Rainbow Rocket left Aether wide open. This is our only chance to strike and take it back!" Lillie was sounding more like Moon with every word spoken. "If we can take it back while they're away, we can ambush them when they return! They won't be ready!"

"That's what you want to do?" Lusamine was just making sure.

"Yes, Mother. I want Alola to be safe when Moon comes back." Lillie gave a firm nod, balling her hands into fists. Nebby, the Lunala, was right beside her and felt her determination. Moon's Decidueye was also ready to get this fight underway. "We have to do what we can for Alola! I'll show Moon…that me leaving wasn't a mistake. I left so I could become stronger for her…! I'll get you back Moon, I swear it…!"

.

.

In the other Alola, Lusamine was working a late night. There were numerous readings of Ultra Wormholes that she couldn't understand. Faba and Wicke had been helping her in this regard, since Burnet was tasked with maternity leave. "I don't understand. What is this sudden influx of Wormholes? Is something happening to our world we don't know about…?"

"That's not the case." RR Giovanni was standing in front of her desk. He appeared so suddenly, Lusamine was understandably startled. "It's not something you don't know about. It's something that's about to happen."

"Wha…!?" Lusamine's eyes widened from this sudden intruder. "Who…!?"

RR Giovani ignored her for a moment and looked around. "It really is exactly the same. It is a stroke of luck that the girl landed in a place so close to home. But we can deal with that later. For now…You're going to serve the same role as the other you've I've come to know. You're going to help me bring my organization into this world so that I may take back what was stolen from me." Giovanni loomed over Lusamine. He was already intimidating on his own, but there was a Pokémon beside him that struck the real fear into Lusamine's heart. That Pokémon was…

Mewtwo.

.

.

Next Time: The Invasion.


	49. Chapter 49: The Invasion

Night fell on Melemele Island. Moon was helping Burnet finish the dishes after dinner. There were quite a few since Munchlax had a bit more than it should have. "Thanks for your help, Moon." Burnet told the girl with a smile.

"Not a problem. I wanna help however I can while I'm here." Moon returned the smile. The two of them were getting along very well over the last few days. "So I hope I'm not infringing on anything, aha…"

"Don't worry. Having you around is a big help." Burnet reassured Moon. "Ash still doesn't do a good job with the dishes." She whispered that last part, the two of them now snickering.

"You seem to be smiling brighter than a Sunny Day." Kukui remarked at Moon's expression. "Ever since you came back from the Mountain with the others."

"I got to patch things up with Lillie." Moon said, now drying her hands. "And I helped everyone. I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to…but I'm glad I was there."

"We couldn't have done it without your help." Ash said with a nod.

"Pika Pika!" Ash's Pikachu also nodded, raising a hand into the air.

With the dishes done, Moon climbed up to the second floor, taking a seat on the couch. She looked up into the sky, a soft smile on her face. "It's still a little weird to be in another world. But I don't know where I'd be without you guys right now."

Ash just grinned. "We're your friends. I know it hasn't been the easiest thing, but everyone is glad you're around too. We're gonna go to the beach again tomorrow, you in?"

"Mhm!" Moon turned to nod. "I know I made last time extremely awkward. But I'll be more involved this time! I love the beach and I wanna Mantine Surf with you guy! I bet'cha can't beat me~"

"Oh yeah!? You're on!" Ash took this challenge head on. Even if Moon was absolutely the best Mantine Surfer he'd ever seen, he would never back down from that!

"Pika!" Moon's Pikachu puffed its chest out, as if to say that Ash was going down.

"Chu!" And Ash's Pikachu did the same thing.

"There's a 75% chance Moon will win-roto!" Rotom chimed in.

"It really is nice to see her getting along with the others now." Burnet said.

"Yeah. She sort of lifts the mood up in her own way." Kukui chuckled a bit. While things were bright and happy here, no one was able to notice the cracks in the sky that turned into full blown Wormholes…

.

.

"Ugh…" Kasumi was reading off of a large list while making her way into town. She was just outside of Po Town, but she did have some company. Unfortunately for her, she had lost a bet and was forced to do the grocery run for Team Skull. Clearly it was everyone's favorite chore. "Why me…"

"Don't complain." At least Kasumi wasn't alone. She had Plumeria with her. The big sister of Team Skull didn't feel quite right leaving her alone after everything that had happened lately. "This doesn't take as long as you think it does. I already know exactly what to get."

"So why didn't you just go alone?" Kasumi whined.

"And deprive you of the experience of shopping for Team Skull?" Plumeria held a wry grin. "I would never."

"You're evil." Kasumi pouted. "But this is better than being stuck with Tupp and his crew…"

"We don't talk about those troublemakers." Plumeria pinched the bridge of her nose. They always had to make things so difficult. "At least you're one of the sensible ones…" Before Plumeria could say anything else, she herself was assaulted by Sludge Bomb! It happened so fast neither of them realized what happened, but Plumeria was falling backwards with widened eyes. "W-What the…"

"AH!?" Kasumi let out a shriek and turned to see what happened.

The cause was a grunt of Rainbow Rocket, a Crobat by his side. "Team Skull. Your ex-boss or whatever caused us some problems. We can't allow that to happen a second time."

"W-What the..?! Who are you!?" Kasumi demanded to know while kneeling down to see if Plumeria was okay.

The grunt just shook his head. "That's on a need to know basis and you don't need to know. Crobat, Sludge Bomb again!" Crobat flew forward, spewing several thick globs of poisonous sludge towards Kasumi and Plumeria.

"Ngh…!" Kasumi grabbed Plumeria and took a desperate leap to the side. To think they'd be ambushed while going shopping. "Dragonite!" Kasumi called forth Dragonite, it roaring once it was on the scene. Kasumi's emotions about Plumeria's wellbeing started to rise and black sparks were dancing around her body. "You…how dare you…!"

"..!" Dragonite let out a small growl. Kasumi's emotions were reflecting onto it as well, causing a familiar sensation to formulate around its body. "Grr…"

"So behind you is Po Town, right?" The grunt smirked. "Just like our intel said. This Alola and the other one are exactly the same. Which means we can get rid of you nuisances early on! Crobat, Brave Bird!" While Dragonite and Kasumi were unable to move for some reason, Crobat took this chance to flew towards Dragonite, a fierce aura cloaking around its body.

"First Impression." A voice called out. In an instant, before Crobat could even touch Dragonite, Golisopod appeared, slamming its claw into Crobat with such power it was thrown back.

"What the…!?" The grunt gasped. "Who…?!"

Guzma walked onto the scene with his hands in his pockets, taking a glance at the scene. "So that's what all that commotion outside was. Someone thinking they can rough up my gang and get away with it, huh?"

"Guzma…" Plumeria winced.

"You again!?" The RR grunt scowled.

"Again?" Guzma raised a brow. "I ain't ever seen someone like you in my life. But since the first time we're meeting is you attempting to terrorize my gang, I'll make this encounter one you don't forget."

"You won't get the chance!" The RR grunt exclaimed. "Cross Poison!"

"Poison Jab." Guzma nudged his head. Crobat came flying down with its wings, in an X formation, attempting to slam them into Golisopod's body. But Golisopod was faster on the counter, claws glowing purple as it slammed them into Crobat's body with considerable force, causing it to fly back.

"Gh…!" The RR grunt sucked his teeth before issuing another command. "Sludge Bomb!" Once Crobat caught itself in the air, it flew higher and released numerous globs of poison towards Golisopod, each one exploding when they made contact!

"Liquidation." Golisopod brought its arms to its side, a blade of water materializing on its hip. As soon as the Sludge Bomb came towards it, it used this blade of water to slash through them seamlessly, not leaving a single trace of poison around it.

The RR grunt was starting to see the difference in power and it was absolutely ridiculous. "Don't get cocky yet! Air Cutter!" Crobat flapped its wings, sending numerous blades of wind towards Golisopod from various angles.

"Pin Missile." Golisopod bent over, an onslaught of needles shooting from its back to clash against the Air Cutter. The two attacks exploded in the sky, creating a thick cloud of black smoke that obscured Crobat from view.

"Got you now! Brave Bird!" Crobat used this chance to dive down once more, plummeting directly into the smoke and into Golisopod! This time, Crobat hit something and the grunt could feel it as well. "Got you." But as that smoke cleared, the grunt's eyes widened. Crobat did indeed hit Goliopod, but not in the way it expected. Golisopod used its large shield-like arms to block Crobat's attack, stopping its momentum cold. "No way…"

"What's the matter? Can't keep up?" Guzma said with a widening smile. "Liquidation!" Before Crobat could retreat, Golisopod slashed at it once more with a blade of water, causing it to tumble along the ground. "You talked a big game a few seconds ago. When you step up to the boss of Team Skull, you gotta walk that game too!"

"Grrr…!" The RR grunt couldn't believe he was getting pushed around like this. But no matter! He had an ace up his sleeve! There was a Z-ring on his wrist and he was planning to use it now. "Fine! Don't cry when this beats you!"

"A Z-ring…?" Kasumi mumbled.

Guzma was unfazed. He just rolled his eyes. "Man…they really just hand those out to anyone these days, huh?" As a man against Alola culture surrounding Z-rings, all he did was shake his head. The method of acquiring it was unknown to him, but he also just didn't care.

"You'll be crushed under the weight of the sky! _**SUPER SONIC SKYSTRIKE!**_" The Grunt pointed his hand into the air and Crobat flew skyward, only to come back down with insane momentum. It planned to crush Golisopod into the ground and rammed right into it! Golisopod braced for impact once again by putting its arms up, the immovable object and the unstoppable force finally colliding. It was a fierce stalemate, one the Grunt fully believed they would win…until Golisopod directed Crobat's momentum skyward, completely beating the Z-move out. "WHA!?"

"Pin Missile." Guzma's final command. Goliospod fired off another round of Pin Missile towards the stunned Crobat, all of them hitting their mark. Crobat then fell to the ground, KO'ed after all of that.

"N-No way…!? How!? Who are you!?" The grunt knew the answer to that question, but he never would have expected to have been completely shut down like this.

Guzma gave the RR grunt a malicious smile. "Just remember me as the guy you tried to pick a fight with."

"…." The grunt couldn't stay here any longer. "I gotta retreat back to Aether! This is insane…!" With Crobat returned, they started to flee.

"Hah…nice, Guzma…" Plumeria said, pained.

"Come on, we gotta patch you up…" Kasumi helped Plumeria up, watching the RR grunt run off…. "Aether…?"

.

.

Things were no better on Akala Island either. A swarm of Rainbow Rocket grunts suddenly appeared with no warning, causing and creating havoc. It was all for the sake of hunting Moon down so Giovanni could expand his empire. Naturally, the one to oppose these grunts was Olivia, her Lycanroc in front of her. "Team Rocket again? I thought we dealt with you already."

"Dealt with us?" The woman who approached Olivia was a cut above the grunts that appeared thus far. Her hair was red and she wore an outfit that distinguished her from the rest. "You couldn't handle us, Kahuna Olivia. We are Team Rainbow Rocket, and I am an admin of such a powerful organization. You can call me Ariana."

"Ariana?" Olivia lifted a brow. "Well, Ariana. You should know I don't take very kindly to people doing whatever they please on my island. So I'm going to have to ask you very kindly to leave. I will only be asking once."

"Oh, don't worry. This island will be ours soon enough." Ariana said with a malicious smile, motioning her hand to call out her Arbok. "We'll be taking it off your hands."

.

.

Things were no better on Melemele Island. Ash and the others were having a fun time on the beach for once until…they appeared. Soliera and Phyco found Moon at long last. Once they did, they naturally attempted to approach, but Moon had no memory of them and hid behind Lillie instinctively. "Come on…" Phyco said with a sigh. "We mean you no harm. We simply seek to bring you back home."

"I don't know who you are…" Moon grumbled.

"You'll have to forgive us, but the last time people came from another world, they tried to attack her." Lillie said while narrowing her eyes.

"Huh. Another one…" Soliera stared at Lillie. "How intriguing. But that's enough of that. It's time to come home, Moon. Lillie is very worried about you. We were asked by Lusamine to come get you. In case you've forgotten, we are the Ultra Recon Squad."

"…." Moon wasn't buying it.

"I think you should give her some space." Kiawe suggested, though with how he was standing it was more like a demand than anything else.

"You're bothering her." Sophocles stated.

Phyco started to stroke his mustache, growing more and more irritated by the second. Moon's amnesia was truly annoying and it didn't seem as if they had any way to make them seem believable. "Children, this matter does not concern you. You have thanks for taking care of Moon but we will be taking her back now. She does not belong here." This conversation would be going smoother had it been Zossie and Dulse. This current duo was far more pragmatic and forceful.

"This matter does concern us." Mallow puffed her cheeks out. "Moon is our friend, and until she's comfortable with you being around, we're not going to let you do whatever you want with her."

"So you're not taking her anywhere!" Lana followed up.

"That's right." Ash rounded it off. There was no way they'd let these strangers come out of nowhere and take Moon.

Soliera and Phyco looked at each other. Even though their helmets covered their eyes, they both shared the same annoyed sentiment. "Very well." Soliera conceded for a moment. "I see that you children are intent on staying in our way. Unfortunately we are not obligated to care about the matters of this world, we only came for Moon. We intend to drag her back kicking and screaming if we must." On that cue, Soliera threw a beast ball forward, calling out a Naganadel.

"What the…!?" Everyone was taken aback as this otherworldly had their own Ultra Beast at their command.

Soliera stood with her arms crossed, numerous people beginning to look on as a scene was being created. "I will not ask you children again."

.

.

Next Time: The Invasion, Part 2


	50. Chapter 50: The Invasion Part 2

The invasion of Team Rainbow Rocket was only getting worse wherever you turned on Alola. While Olivia was dealing with the sudden intrusion of Ariana and her squad, Hala and Hau were face to face with another Rainbow Rocket executive: Proton. He wasn't alone and had numerous Rainbow Rocket grunts at his side, looking bored as he glanced around. "So this is Melemele? Looks incredibly trashy if you were to ask me."

"If you don't like it that much then you are welcome to leave." Hala said, he and his Hariyama standing firm. He had no idea what this was all about, but as Island Kahuna, it was his duty to ensure no stranger brought harm to Melemele.

"And don't let the door hit you on the way out!" Hau exclaimed. "Alola!" He was using the 'goodbye' variation of this.

"Tch…" Proton placed a hand on his hand, sucking his teeth in annoyance. "Of course I wouldn't be able to get anything good from the natives. But I'm going to ask anyway, so I can at least give you the option. They call me the cruelest member of Team Rocket. Though that would be Team Rainbow Rocket now."

"Ask something?" Hala kept his guard up. "This is an awful lot of force for just a simple question."

"It all depends on how you answer." Proton said with a malicious grin. "So let's begin? It's a simple question. Do you happen to know something about a girl named Moon? We don't have a lot of time here so it would be fantastic if we could find her as soon as possible. We need to take back something she has."

Based on Proton's tone, it sounded like they intended to bring Moon harm. After battling Moon, Hala came to understand the type of person she was. She was a friend of Ash and the others and as such, he would allow no harm to come to her. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about. So if you could kindly leave."

Hau took the hint and nodded. "Yeah. You'll have to go back from wherever you came."

"Hm." Was Proton buying this? "So you don't know anything, do you? You could be lying. I never was one to take someone's words at face value." No one knew a liar other than a rotten, scheming criminal, and that was one thing he took pride in being. "If you really don't know anything, then I won't destroy you too badly. If you do, then…you'll be sorry that you ever crossed paths with me." Proton tossed a pokeball into the air, calling forth his Slowking. "So, the easy way or the hard way? Personally, I'm fine with either."

.

.

Jessie, James, and Meowth were simply enjoying their day off when they got a transmission from HQ. Scrambling upstairs, they answered the call to Matori, with no Giovanni in the background. Jessie was immediately displeased by this and scowled. "What do you want?"

James then shoved her to the side. "What she means to say is, is there something you need from us?" They had to be respectful to Giovanni's secretary but Jessie always made that difficult.

"You are needed." Matori explained, adjusting her glasses. "We do not yet know how it's possible, but Rainbow Rocket has once again invaded this world. Their goals are unclear, but there is another Giovanni as well."

"Another boss!?" Meowth gasped. Two Giovannis!? That seemed like a pain. "And what's our boss doin'?"

"He wants Rainbow Rocket eliminated." Matori continued. "Rainbow Rocket Giovanni told us that he is making way to the Aether Paradise. He is searching for something; whatever it is, he will not be allowed to obtain it. Instead, Team Rocket will invade the Aether Paradise and destroy Rainbow Rocket."

"Team Rocket vs those fakers? Count us in!" Meowth grinned. They were tasked with defeating Rainbow Rocket first, so this all worked out nicely.

"Arrive now." Matori commanded. "That is Giovanni's command. We are currently about to disembark as well." With that message delivered the transmission ended.

"Rainbow Rocket again…" James stroked his chin. "A Team Rocket from another world. Why are they here?"

"Do you think it has to do with that one twerp who showed up recently?" Jessie questioned. "We'd never seen her before until that one day."

Ah! James then remembered Mt. Lanakila. "That's right! That girl _is _from another world! It may be possible that she and Rainbow Rocket are from the same world!"

"This is startin' to make my head hurt…" Meowth groaned.

"We can deal with that later. For now, we have to show Rainbow Rocket who the superior Rocket is!" Jessie exclaimed, dramatically pointing a finger forward.

.

.

Ula'Ula Island was far from safe either, though Nanu did not have to deal with a number of Team Rainbow Rocket Grunts. There was just a lone Admin standing in front of him, but that was reason enough for him to rub the back of his neck and groan. Nanu, of course, wasn't ignorant concerning the particulars of Ultra Wormholes. "So you came back, huh…" Nanu said, letting out a sigh as he stood ready with his Alolan Persian. "We're already in the middle of something important, so if you don't mind."

The Admin that Nanu had the pleasure of dealing with was Petrel. He let out a quiet laugh and shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't do that just yet. We're looking for a girl named Moon. You seen her?"

Nanu kept his hands in his pockets. "No." He kept it short and simple. There was no chance he would give these creeps anything they wanted.

Petrel then rubbed his hands together. That sort of response was expected, but was it true? That had yet to be seen. "Is that so? Then perhaps you don't mind me taking a look around this island. We can't have that girl go escaping us again. She has the key to Giovanni's masterplan and we cannot fail. We don't have much time, you see…"

"Not a lot of time, huh?" Nanu lifted a brow. So their stay in this world was only temporary at best? That was good information, but he planned to send them packing before their time ran out. They weren't welcome here. "Sorry, but we're not taking guests right now. You got one chance to leave before I pack it up for you."

"How expected…" Petrel sighed. "It's just so hard to find good help these days. But if that's the game you wish to play, I don't mind getting my hands dirty a little. I've already got what I wanted from you."

"…?" That made Nanu quirk a brow. Just what was this weirdo planning.?

"Rainbow Rocket is planning great things. A universal takeover! Just as we reached the apex of our plan, that girl had to go and run away into another world. But now that know she's here in Alola somewhere, the plan can resume. If you are a smart man, which I know you are, you won't interfere with us."

"And what makes you think I won't?" Nanu lifted a brow.

That's when Petrel snapped his fingers. An unconscious Acerola was brought over by a Rainbrow Rocket Grunt. "Because you wouldn't want her to get hurt, would you?"

"…!" They got Acerola!? How careless of him to think she wouldn't be targeted. Even worse since she was no damsel in distress. They had to have gotten the jump on her. Nanu narrowed his eyes, sliding his hands into his pockets.

"This is our bit of insurance so you don't get in our way. We don't need the police after us, got it?" Petrel relished in Nanu's silent, but angry expression. "Now then, we have a hunt to begin."

.

.

The final Admin that appeared from Ultra Alola was Archer, the second in command of Rainbow Rocket. To his displeasure, he had to survey that of Poni Island, but was grossly disappointed to find there was hardly any civilization. "How disgusting. This island is only wilderness. No one in their right mind would even think about living out here."

"Excuse me?"

"Honestly, checking this island was a waste of time." Archer sighed. Even though he hadn't thoroughly checked the island, he deemed that unnecessary. "We've no need for an island like this. Perhaps we can get rid of it once we've taken over…"

"AHEM!" Hapu cleared her throat so Archer would notice her.

"Oh. A small child." Archer stared, unamused at Hapu's appearance. "Listen, kid. I'm dealing with some adult things right now, so if you would kindly remove yourself from my presence."

"Who are you?" Hapu ignored Archer's insults. "I don't take kindly to talk about my island like that."

"Your Island?" Archer raised a brow, but it then hit up. "Ah, you must be one of those, Kahunas…" Alolan culture was lost on him and he didn't really care to pick up on it. "Fine, I have a question for you. Do you know a girl named Moon?"

"…N-No." Hapu shook her head. A man who was clearly a villain asking that question caught her off guard. She would have liked to think she saved it, but…..

Archer saw right through that transparent lie. "Okay. So where do I find her?"

"I'm not telling you anything!" Hapu narrowed her eyes. Her Golurk was now looming behind her threateningly. If Archer wanted to press for answers, he'd have to fight that goliath first.

"…I do not have time for these games." But unfortunately, this was the only lead he had on him. "Fine then. I'll show you why Giovanni made me second in command."

.

.

A grave misunderstanding led to a battle on the beach. To the eyes of spectators, it just looked like Alola's newly crowned champion was sparring against someone, but it ran much deeper than that. Soliera and Phyco were insistent that Moon come along with them, without even listening to what she had to say. Because of that, Ash and his Naganadel were battling against Soliera and her Naganadel! The two Ultra Beasts zoomed through the sky, clashing with one another. "This boy possesses a Naganadel as well? Intriguing, but that's now what we're here for." Phyco said while stroking his chin.

"You're not taking Moon anywhere!" Ash exclaimed. "Dragon Pulse!"

"We don't have time for these little games!" Soliera grunted in annoyance. "Dragon Pulse!" On that command, both Naganadels released vibrant, multicolored blasts from their stingers. It took the shape of a dragon and as soon as they collided against one another, they explode din the sky. The two dragons were off in the sky once again, zooming around frantically from all angles to get an advantage on each other.

"Oi oi…!" Marcus and the others ran onto the scene. "What's going on here?"

"Who are those weirdoes?" Takeba pointed at Phyco and Soliera.

"They claim they're from Moon's world, but they aren't even listening to us! They're just planning to take her back!" Mallow said worriedly.

"But we're not letting that happen!" Kiawe narrowed his gaze. He was certain Ash would win this battle, but in the strange occurrence that he didn't, the two Ultra Recon Squad members were several outnumbered anyway.

"…" Moon was silent, but Lillie was making sure no harm would come to her.

"Don't worry, Moon. You're safe." Lillie said reassuringly.

"Thunderbolt!"

"Sludge Bomb!" A bolt of lightning came from Ash's Naganadel, while Soliera's released numerous bombs of poison. Once again, the two attacks exploded, but Ash's Naganadel was in front of its foe before Soliera could realize it. "What!?"

"X-Scissor!" Nagandel dove forward with its stinger, slamming it right into its foe's chest to knock it down into the sand. With this opening, Ash crossed his arms and his Z-ring began to shine. "We'll make this quick!"

"STOP STOP STOPPPPPP!" That voice was unfamiliar.

"Huh?!" Ash stopped and everyone looked to the source of the voice. It was Zossie, frantically running towards the battle to stop it.

Zossie came to a halt, panting heavily with Dulse soon behind her. "W-What are you two doing!? We weren't supposed to battle anyone!"

"I must question what you are doing…" Dulse said.

"We are trying to get Moon back." Phyco said matter of factly.

"That's not what you're supposed to do!" Zossie was going to have a headache with these two.

"…More of them…?" Elizabeth raised a brow.

"What's going on here?" Grace asked. Clearly this was a team but they seemed a little uncoordinated.

"I am super sorry for my companions!" Zossie sighed. "Moon, it's me, Zossie! Your friend!"

Well, Zossie was a lot friendlier than the others. Moon was a bit more willing to respond to this one. "I'm sorry; I hit my head when I fell. So I don't remember a lot."

"Hm…" Dulse stared at Lillie. "How uncanny. It seems this Alola is nearly the same as the other."

"I guess we should explain from the beginning…" Phyco sighed. This was going to waste a little bit more time than he would have liked. But before that happened, a helicopter landed nearby, Faba and Wicke nearly tumbling out of it. "Hm?"

"Faba? Wicke?" Lillie turned to the two Aether employees. "W-What's wrong?"

"Are they in a rush?" Sophocles asked.

Scott stared around at the sky. His eyes narrowed as the clouds seemed darker than usual. "…Something isn't right."

"Are you two okay!?" Lana asked.

"S-Something…terrible happened…at Aether…" Wicke said through heavy breaths. "Lillie, your mother, she…she…!"

Lillie's eyes suddenly widened in horror. This situation was going from strange to worse and her heart tightened in her chest. "What happened to Mother!?"

.

.

Next Time: Crisis At Aether.


	51. Chapter 51: Crsis At Aether

A battle between Ash and Soliera was brought to a swift end by Zossie and Dulse making their way onto the scene to clear up any misunderstandings. But things were only going from bad to worse as Wicke and Faba arrived from an Aether helicopter in a panic, with news about Lusamine no less. It was going to be a crowded trip, but the best place for this conversation was going to be the Ultra Guardians HQ, which meant going to the Pokémon School. Moon was naturally confused when they stepped into the classroom. "What are we doing here…?"

"Oh right…she wasn't here when we did this last time." Sophocles nearly forgot. "Try to remain calm, okay?"

"Calm?" Moon tilted her head.

"Here we go!" Kukui was here for the sole purpose of activating the secret button on the chalkboard. This prompted the bookcase nearby to turn into an elevator!

Moon's eyes widened in awe as this happened. This was unlike anything she had seen before and despite the current situation, it was pretty cool. "Whoooooooa…!"

"Cool, right?" Kiawe said.

"Huh." Zossie stared with wide eyes. That was pretty cool. "That elevator looks really small, though…!"

"Yeah, that thing is not fitting all of us." Elizabeth shook her head. "Once we get everyone down there, we can start figuring out what the heck is going on here, staring with you four." She pointed to the Ultra Recon Squad.

As stated, several trips needed to be taken for everyone to properly fit into the Ultra Guardians HQ under the school. Moon was in complete awe that something like this existed and she was about to go around pressing buttons. But it was Clefable who had to keep her from pressing the wrong things. "Ehehe…" Moon giggled.

Gladion was waiting in the HQ. He received word from Wicke and Faba about some sort of situation at Aether, but there was more happening that he thought. "…What's going on here?"

Wicke and Faba took a seat as the floor currently belonged to the Ultra Recon Squad. "Let's start with you four." Marcus said.

"Right!" Zossie clasped her hands together. "We're the Ultra Recon Squad and we come from another world!"

"Moon's world?" Lillie asked.

"Nope." Zossie shook her head. "We come from another, other world. I'm Zossie, that's Dulse, Psyco, and Soliera." She pointed them off. "In our world…Necrozma ate our light."

"It did…?" Ash wasn't so sure how to respond to that. "But we've dealt with…"

"You dealt with one." Phyco said while stroking his mustache, cutting Ash off before he could finish. "We sensed that a Necrozma has made contact with this world…but you seem to have returned its light to it. But just as there are many worlds, there are many Necrozmas as well, all seeking to consume light."

"That…makes sense." Ash rubbed the back of his head. Moon was proof enough of that.

"We came to Moon's Alola to figure out what we should do about Necrozma. To tell the truth, there's a chance it may strike her world." Dulse said.

Moon's eyes widened. "Huh!? That's awful…!"

"I said it was a chance. There is nothing concrete to prove this, yet your Alola had some of the brightest light." Dulse continued to explain. "It is there where we met you."

"And I'm one of your bessssst friends!" Zossie clasped her hands together. "But you don't remember that, huh…?"

Moon shook her head with a slight sigh. "I'm sorry, but I don't. When I arrived here I woke up and didn't remember a lot of things…"

"So you can see why several people wearing weird suits would startle her." Takeba placed her hands on her hips, giving Soliera and Phyco a glare. But they shrugged it off.

"I already apologized." Soliera said.

"Anyway! We don't know if you're aware of Team Rainbow Rocket or not, but…" Zossie went on.

"We do." Lana said with a nod. "They tried attacking Moon before."

Moon pulled out a key from her pocket. It was the key to the machine in her world. "I was told they might be after this. If they have this key, they can travel freely between worlds and no one can stop them…"

"But they're already here!" Wicke exclaimed. She could hardly keep quiet when the topic of conversation was related to why she and Faba were here. As soon as she said that, all eyes turned to her.

"What do you mean?" Dulse tilted his head. "That can't be…"

"If you're going to imply that it is impossible, we are here to tell you that it is." Faba declared.

"What happened?" Gladion repeated himself. Though he was trying to hide out antsy he was.

"You said Mother was in danger. Is she all right!?" Lillie asked as well.

"It happened so fast…" Wicke's gaze went down to the floor. "It happened just last night, actually. Your mother was looking into disturbances concerning a rise in Ultra Wormholes. As it turns out…it must have been Team Rainbow looking for another way to jump into our world because…"

"Because…?" Grace began.

But before the question could be answered, there was a transmission on their screen. They were being contacted from Aether which only meant one of two things. When the screen displayed the image, there was RR Giovanni, sitting in Lusamine's desk with a pleased expression. "Ah, she said you'd all be here. You must be the Ultra Guardians."

"Giovanni!?" Ash gasped.

"…!" Moon's eyes widened and the color drained from her face. It only took a single second for memories of the incident to come flooding back into her head. "N-No way…how are you here?!"

"And you're here as well. Perfect. Things are really going my way." RR Giovanni leaned back in the seat. "This transmission goes out to all of Alola, so listen carefully. I am Giovanni, the leader of Team Rainbow Rocket. I come from another world with a simple goal in mind: the expansion of my Rocket Empire. But there is something that has stopped me from doing so. Her name is Moon and she has that which I require. We do not have much time until our method of transportation kicks us back into the Alola I've already taken over…but I do not intend to sit around and wait either. You have one hour to bring me the key, Moon. If you don't…" The camera shifted over to an unconscious Lusamine, Mewtwo's shadow looming over her. "Then…you should already know what will happen."

"NO…!" Moon cried out. "Leave her out of this!"

"Mother…!" Lillie and Gladion gasped.

"You don't belong in this world anyway. So it would be for the best if you surrendered yourself quickly. As we speak, my Admins are currently dealing with Island Kahunas in their own way. You have 59 minutes now." Giovanni snapped his fingers and the camera shifted to outside of the Aether Paradise, where numerous Ultra Wormholes were opening up. With that eerie ending, the transmission ended, leaving everyone in utter shock.

"Tch…" Scott grit his teeth. "It sounds like they only have an hour of playtime before they're forced to leave like before."

"But they took Lusamine hostage to coerce us into making a hasty arrival. How cheap!" Takeba huffed.

"They're going to pay for that." Gladion said with a death glare.

"I won't let them hurt Mother!" Lillie said, determined.

"We should contact Lovrina and Rui to see if there's anything they can do to help us." Marcus turned to the others. "They've been spending the last few days up to their necks in Shadow Pokémon, but still…!"

"This is an emergency-roto!" Rotom pressed a button to show the number of Ultra Wormholes opening up all over Alola.

"So many…! This is ridiculous!" Kiawe grunted. "If they open so many…!"

"Who knows what manner of beasts may slip out." Soliera crossed her arms. "It may even draw the attention of Necrozma."

Phyco stroked his mustache. "This is troubling. We did not think they would come here of their own accord. We came here simply to retrieve Moon and drive them back. This is now the second hoop they've jumped through."

"That Pokémon…" Grace narrowed her eyes. Because they only saw Mewtwo's shadow, it was difficult to discern, but she had a pit in her stomach at the thought. "Rotom, can you replay the image?"

"There's no need." Wicke sighed. "It's a Mewtwo."

"WH…" Everyone's eyes widened.

"Why is it always a Mewtwo?" Marcus groaned. That was going to be a problem.

"I-It's just like before…" Moon's eyes dulled and she started shaking. "It's happening all over again…someone's going to get hurt because of me…"

"Huh?" Lillie turned to Moon.

"I remember now…" Moon brought her arms in to hug herself. "I was fighting Rainbow Rocket back home. They were strong, but I had to be stronger. I was fighting Giovanni and he was about to hurt Lillie…so I jumped in and took the key with me. I…I don't know what's been going on since then…they could be hurt or…"

"No one's hurt!" Zossie said in her attempt to reassure Moon.

"But I couldn't stop them…!" Moon objected. "And now they're putting all of Alola in danger just to get to me…! I…I have no choice but to go."

"By yourself?!" Lana shook her head. There was no way they were letting that fly.

"But he just wants me…" Moon said.

Lillie wasn't having any of this and placed her hands on Moon's shoulders, looking into her eyes for the truth. "You don't want me to get hurt. That's why you want to go alone."

"Huh?" Moon bit her, unable to hold the gaze and glanced away. "…I…I couldn't save Lillie. I just threw myself in danger and got hurt…even though she fought with me I…it's my problem. I can't bring you guys into my problem…"

"That's where you're wrong." Ash said. "We're your friends, right. Your problems are our problems. You helped us against Cipher when we needed it most, so of course we'll help you against Rainbow Rocket!"

"Pika!" Ash's Pikachu lifted a hand into the air, as if to say the same thing.

"Plus, they're marching in on our home like they own it. We'd be fighting them anyway." Kiawe held a grin. "But we'd feel way better with you at our side."

"We're with you Moon!" Mallow and Lana said together, raising their hands into the air.

"You can count on us!" Sophocles said with Togedmaru adding a cheer at the end.

Gladion had his back half turned. "It sounds like the me from your world wasn't around to help with the fight. So on his behalf; I'll kick Rainbow Rocket to the curb. I won't lose another family member."

"You guys…" Moon felt like she could cry. Everyone was so willing to give her a hand in a problem that wasn't even theirs to begin with. She then turned her gaze back to Lillie, giving a slight nod. "O-Okay then…! We'll go to Aether together! I really want to protect this Alola too! Because it's your home." While still facing Lillie, her lips curved up into a slight smile. "And I want to protect what's important to you."

"Ah…" Lillie's green eyes widened, a pink tint dusting her cheeks. She did manage to return the smile. "Thank you, Moon."

"We don't have much time to lose." Scott hated to cut the moment short, but they were low on time. "We need a plan. There's a strong chance if Moon hands over the key, he'll summon all of Team Rainbow Rocket into this Alola to overwhelm us." That was a very real possibility and one that wasn't lost on Moon.

"There's also the Mewtwo." Marcus pointed out. "We can dogpile it if need be, but it's also a Mewtwo."

"I think…I think I have a way around that." Moon said. "Not the Mewtwo…but if I can activate the machine in this world…or if by some chance it's activated in my Alola, it will make a Wormhole open in that very room. If we can push Giovanni back in…we might be able to have a chance." It was a vague, incomplete plan due to her memory, but she was simply recalling what had happened to her. "It's dumb but…"

"It can use some fine tuning on the way there." Sophocles said with a thumbs up.

"We can talk about what we're doing when we get there. I doubt we'll be getting in without a fight." Grace said. "Actually, going now might be the best time. He said the Admins were fighting against the Kahunas right? I know they can hold their own, so if we go while the top men are gone…"

"We can punch a hole through their formation! They might not even be fully situated yet!" Takeba clasped her hands together. "Let's give them a warm welcome, shall we!"

"Ultra Guardians, Move out!" Ash stated. They had a mission to defend Alola, defeat Rainbow Rocket, and get Lusamine back. It was going to be a tough battle, but they hadn't lost yet and today wouldn't be the first time either.

.

.

Meanwhile, in Ultra Alola…

Lillie, Lusamine, Guzma, Hau, and Colress were on their way back to the Aether Paradise. After learning that Rainbow Rocket went off elsewhere. This left the Foundation severely unguarded and this was the opening they needed to take it back. This oversight would cost Rainbow Rocket severely. Lillie looked towards the Foundation with a determined gaze. "Hang on, Moon…"

.

.

Next Time: Aether Raid


	52. Chapter 52: Aether Raid

"Ugh…" Plumeria awoke with a wince. The last thing she remembered was taking a hard hit and after that, it went black. "What happened…?"

"Oh, Plum! You're awake!" Kasumi let out a sigh of relief. "You took a hit outta nowhere and it scared me…Guzma had to come in and help us out."

"That true?" Plumeria glanced towards Guzma, who was leaning against the wall. "Sorry for the trouble. I guess I really let my guard down."

"It ain't your fault." Guzma waved off Plumeria's apology. "No one gets jumped during shopping day. I saw somethin' off so I went to check it out. And I walked right into some punk trying to take out some of my crew. You know I couldn't stand by and not beat him down."

"Are you okay?" Kasumi asked. "You were out for a little bit…"

"I got hit by poison right…? I don't feel that terrible." Plumeria admitted. "Salazzle 'n I didn't get along at first so I'm kinda used to it. But that doesn't stop it from hurting like heck."

"Thank goodness…" Kasumi let out a sigh. "I'm really sorry I couldn't do anything…"

At that moment, Tupp, Rupp, and Zipp burst into the room rather rudely. They were lucky Plumeria was awake, but that news was that urgent. "B-Boss!" Tupp stammered.

"Hey, can't you see Plum is recovering!?" Kasumi snapped at the trio that barged in, causing them to flinch and recoil.

"B-But it's super urgent…!" Zipp objected.

"You're just lucky I'm already awake." Plumeria held a slight glare at the trio. She already had plenty of reasons to dislike them and this moment wasn't exactly helping their case. "What is it?"

"There was a message playing outside." Rupp explained. "Some guy from Team Rainbow Rocket? Well, I dunno what his deal is, but he's tryna cause trouble in Alola! _Our _turf! They're after that girl that kid and his friends are friends with."

"They're hold up in Aether right now." Zipp nodded.

"Moon…?" Kasumi pursed her lips, remembering Moon and what she told her on Mt. Lanakila.

Guzma closed his eyes, taking in the information that was given to him before coming to his own conclusion. "Well, I don't care about all that. What they're doing here, what they're after…doesn't mean anything to me. But they had to go and make the mistake of messing with my crew. Now that is something I don't have room for forgiveness for." His eyes then opened, a malicious grin crossing his lips. "Which is why we're gonna do the same to them."

"Whaddya mean?" Rupp asked.

"We beat them down and beat them down and don't let up?" Kasumi blinked.

"Now you're thinkin' with your head!" Guzma let out a laugh. "Those punks think they can get away with that little stunt? Let's see how they like it when someone rolls up on them outta the blue!"

"I like this plan." Plumeria hopped out of bed. "What are we waiting for!?"

"That's the spirit. We leave now." Guzma said, making his way out of the room.

.

.

The Ultra Guardians were off! They couldn't afford to waste even a single second. They had to get Moon to Aether and most likely fight their way to Rainbow Rocket Giovanni, who was confirmed to have a Mewtwo by his side. That wasn't a fight they were looking forward to, but it was a fight they'd have to win somehow. Their plate was already full and they had no idea how much crazier things would get when they arrived. Scott, Grace, Marcus, and Elizabeth were riding with Faba and Wicke in the Aether Helicopter they used to arrive. The others were on their Ride Pokémon, while Moon hitched a ride with Lillie on Altaria. Off they went with determination and a plan.

Kukui watched the Ultra Guardians fly off, staring as they went into the horizon. "You all be careful…"

Soon, Tapu Koko itself appeared next to him, watching the Ultra Guardians depart. But it wasn't just looking at them either. "Koko…"

"Worried too, huh?" Kukui glanced at the island deity with a reassuring smile. "But it's about Moon, isn't it?" Tapu Koko nodded, confirming Kukui's thoughts. "I know how you feel. But I also know you've been keeping a steady eye on her for a while, too?"

"Ko." Tapu Koko chirped in confirmation.

"When she first arrived, during her Grand Trial, and when she fought to protect Burnet and I. You've been drawn to her as fast as you were to Ash. I wonder why that is…" Kukui honestly had no idea. It was rare to see a Tapu, even rarer to see one take personal interest in someone. "But I'm sure she appreciates it either way."

Tapu Koko flew forward a bit, gesturing to Melemele Island. "Ko!"

"Huh? You think her being here isn't some coincidence?" Kukui thought about it for a moment. "I wonder about that. She did help the others out when they really needed it…"

.

.

Hau and Hala were busy battling Proton and his goons. Hau's Alolan Raichu flew forward, releasing Thunderbolt after Thunderbotl onto the grunts' pokemon. Despite being Grunts, they weren't going down very easily, much to his surprise. "Gah! These guys are a little tougher than I thought…"

Proton's Weezing and Hala's Hariyama were fighting it out. Weezing was firing off multiple Sludge Bombs, while Hariyama had to dispose of them with Arm Thrust to avoid being poisoned. "I honestly don't know why you're trying so hard. It almost seems like you have something to hide."

"Something to hide?" Hala shook his head. "I'm protecting my island from invaders. Arm Thrust!" Haiyama lunged forward, aiming numerous palm strikes at Weezing. They were all direct hits, but Weezing was a resilient Pokémon and tanked every single one.

"Double Edge." Proton commanded. Weezing flew forward at high speeds, slamming its body into Hariyama's with such force it nearly knocked it over. This Rainbow Rocket Admin was not here to play any games.

Hau noticed that a Golbat was attempting to sneak up on Hala. "Tutu, watch out! Raichu, use Thunderbolt!" Raichu surfed along its tail, releasing a strong bolt of lightning to fry the Golbat before it could try anything.

"Thank you." Hala gave his grandson an appreciative nod. "These opponents are tougher than I imagined, but as Island Kahuna, I shall not yield!" Hala then noticed something out the corner of his eye and looked up. He could see the Ultra Guardians flying over the island. "…!"

"Hm?" Proton noticed as well. It happened so fast he barely caught it, but he could see Moon and Lillie riding Altaria as they flew off to Aether. At that moment his lips curled up into a menacing grin. "Well well well…!" Proton turned his gaze to Hala. "Now how about that? It seems like you knew something after all, old man! Flamethrower!" Weezing flew forward, both mouths firing off a torrent of flame that struck Hariyama to send it backwards, but it remained standing tall.

"What I know no longer matters. Your time is short." Hala said confidently. "The Ultra Guardians will ensure your plan fails."

"Is that right?" Proton tipped his hat towards Hala. "There's no one who can stand up to Giovanni. But there's no more time to squeeze the truth out of you. It's about time we head back to intercept them. Weezing, Poison Gas." Weezing hovered in the air, purple gas spewing from every pore on its body, filling the air with toxic fumes. The Rainbow Rocket Grunts were already aware to back up and cover their mouths. Proton hardly cared if they were collateral.

"Get back!" Hala told Hau.

"Oh, I'm not letting you escape that easily." Proton's smile turned into an evil one. "Explosion." He uttered that command without a second thought. Weezing dashed through the Poison Gas, its entire body lighting up in a white hue. Before anyone could react, a massive explosion blew back Hau, Hala, Raichu, and Hariyama. Proton gladly used his own Pokémon as a weapon just to prove a point and casually returned it as if nothing had happened.

"Gh…" Hala and Hau were both injured from that attack. Haryiama and Raichu were down as well. The suddenness of it all caught them all off guard.

And that is why Proton was often referred to as the most vicious Admin of Rainbow Rocket. "I've had my fun with you, but you're not worth it anymore." Proton turned his back to the downed Kahuna and his grandson, beginning to walk off with the rest of his grunts. "We're returning to base. Our prize awaits us." He then sent out a transmission to all of Team Rainbow Rocket. "Attention, Rainbow Rocket. Our target is en route to Aether. Return to base at once so we can complete our mission."

.

.

"You heard Giovanni's message, didn't you?" Arianna asked Olivia. "It's easier for everyone if the girl is handed over. She wouldn't happen to be on this Island, would she?"

"No." Olivia responded calmly. "And even if she were, I wouldn't let you take her anywhere."

"But she doesn't belong here. We're only…trying to take her back to where she belongs." Arianna phrased that as carefully as she could, but as one might expect, Olivia wasn't letting that fly.

"You don't belong there or here either. So why don't you go back to where you came from? Accelrock!" Olivia wasn't going to waste any more time trying to talk this situation out. Her Lycanroc sprinted forward at incredible speeds, gunning right for Arianna's Arbok.

"Poison Tail!" Just as Lycanroc got close, Arbok swung its poisonous tail at the rock type. The two clashed and a shockwave boomed out, causing the two of them to recoil backwards. "I see, so you're not that weak."

"Rock Slide!" After recoiling from the clash, Lycanroc jumped into the air, firing off numerous large rocks that fell towards Arbok in an attempt to crush it.

"Wrap!" Arbok slithered through the incoming Rock Slide, evading any and all danger with its quick movements. It then lunged into the air, wrapping its long body around Lycanroc's own to bind its movements. The two fell to the ground with Lycanroc struggling to escape Arbok's constricting hold.

"Crunch!" Lycanroc thrashed around for a bit before opening its jaw wide, biting down on Arbok with all the force it could muster. Arbok cried out and released Lycanroc in response. "Accelrock!" And with this opening Lycanroc quickly slammed its body into Arbok, causing it to tumble along the ground violently.

Arianna wasn't so pleased at Olivia's tactics. "Hmph. Earthquake." Arbok recovered from the attacks it took, slamming its tail on the ground. This simple motion caused a powerful tremor to violently shake the arena. Everyone had to stagger around to keep from falling over, but Lycanroc suffered the worst of these seismic tremors, collapsing onto its side as a result.

"Lycanroc!" Olivia cried out in worry.

"Giga Drain!" With this opening, Arbok slithered forward once more, sinking its fangs into Lycanroc's skin, draining it of its energy to refuel its own. This super effective combination wore down on Lycanroc, but it was able to continue fighting and shake Arbok off. "I guess you're not a Kahuna for no reason. You're far tougher than I was expecting…" And then came Proton's transmission. "Ah…so she is here and going to the specified location. Very well, as much as I would love to finish you off here, I have a bigger Magikarp to catch."

"And what makes you think I'll let you get away?" Olivia wasn't done with their fight. But just before she could make another move, the Rainbow Rocket Grunts that were on the sidelines were now surrounding her. "…"

"Make sure she can't follow me. If you can't fulfill a simple task like that, then you'll be disposed of." Arianna warned the grunts as she started to walk off, returning Arbok in the process.

"Yes, ma'am!" The Rainbow Rocket Grunts exclaimed in unison.

Olivia was completely surrounded, but she was not deterred. She was just going to be held up for a little longer than she would have liked. "Fine then. Lycanroc, we can make this quick."

.

.

Hapu's Golurk vs Archer's Houndoom. Archer wasn't really interested in a fight, but Hapu wasn't telling him the information he knew she knew. The battle came to a standstill after Giovanni's announcement. Archer stroked his chin and looked at Hapu's expression and he could see how shocked the young Kahuna was. "So, why don't we stop this and just get to business?"

"No." Hapu shook her head. "I don't care if that girl isn't from this Alola or whatever. She's a friend of Ash's and that says enough. Hammer Arm!" Golurk loomed over Houndoom, rearing its large arm backwards to slam it down on Houndoom, but it dodged the blow that crushed the earth under it.

"Fire Blast." Houndoom gathered flames within its mouth, spewing them forward in a large symbol that crashed against Golurk's chest. The mighty titan staggered backwards one step, but otherwise remained firm. "This is just a waste of both our times. You may be a Kahuna but that does not mean you have what it takes to stand against me."

"You're not taking anyone back just because you feel like it!" Hapu shot back. "Shadow Punch!" Golurk tucked in its legs, propelling itself forward at astounding speeds to slam its fist into Houndoom, sending it crashing into a nearby wall with its sheer power.

"It's for a greater purpose." Archer shook his head. "But I do not expect a child to understand. Dark Pulse." Houndoom recovered from the Shadow Punch, dashing forward to fire off a beam of dark energy from its mouth. This struck Golem and the sheer power nearly made it topple over.

"Golurk!" Hapu furrowed her brows. This man was clearly stronger than he was letting on, but her pride and duty as a Kahuna prevented her from backing down just because of that. "Get off my Island! Shadow Ball!"

"Fire Blast!"

The two attacks were fired at once, clashing in the middle for a fierce stalemate. Neither move succeeded in overpowering the other, resulting in a large explosion that nearly blew all parties back. Archer then groaned, still questioning why he was the one assigned to this backwater island. "This has been a poor distraction, but it's clear that what I seek…" And in came Proton's transmission, loud enough for Hapu to hear as well. "…is heading right where I need it to be."

"What makes you think we're done here?!" Hapu asked.

"This." Archer snapped his fingers and a helicopter appeared overhead, dropping numerous Rainbow Rocket grunts onto Poni Island. "This island serves no purpose, so I don't have any qualms getting rid of it. If you and the Island Guardian wish to protect this desolate land, I suggest you deal with my subordinates rather than me."

"Tch…!" Hapu sucked her teeth. All she could do was watch as Archer boarded the helicopter, leaving her to deal with the RR grunts that were present only to cause trouble.

.

.

"We're almost at Aether!" Lana told the others. They didn't realize they had been spotted, but this was still their best chance at getting the jump on Rainbow Rocket.

"Hold on, Mother! We're coming!" Lillie said with a firm nod, then glanced over her shoulder to Moon. "Are you okay?"

"Mhm." Moon nodded. "I can do this. I…I don't know how we're going to do this, but we're going to do this!" It was that optimism that kept her from freezing up.

"Are we really just going through the front door?" Marcus asked from the helicopter.

"That's our best option." Gladion said while looking straight ahead. "I can already tell the battle ahead is going to get hectic…we should avoid damaging the place as much as we can. It's still a Pokémon Reserve."

"Ah, I almost forgot about that…" Takeba pursed her lips. "We have to make sure those innocent Pokémon in healing don't get hurt or used."

"One more mission to add to the plate, then." Elizabeth was just ready to fight.

"Uh-roto. What is that?" Rotom asked.

"Huh?" Ash turned and saw a helicopter…behind them. "Who…?"

"I think we have company." Scott said while narrowing his eyes.

"No way…!" Mallow gasped. "But how!?"

It was Proton. After spotting them earlier, he really couldn't let them get away. "So here you are! It's so nice to see you again, Moon! You even found a copycat of that girl. You must've been having a fun time here right?"

Moon's face paled for a moment. "…!"

"Get lost!" Kiawe exclaimed.

"Just hand over that key and it all goes away!" Proton told Moon.

"No!" Moon shook her head. "I'm not letting you get your way again! We're going to stop you this time!"

Proton expected that response. He was on a bit of a high after what he did to Hau and Hala, so he was willing to indulge in his cruelty a bit more. "Good, you still have that fire. I can't wait to snuff it out. Men, you know what to do." Proton called out a Crobat, while the other grunts in the helicopter called out forces such as Swellow, Golbat, Ledian, and numerous Zubats. "Take down that helicopter." On that command, numerous attacks were sent towards the helicopter to shoot it down while it was airborne.

"WAIT! BUT WE'RE IN HERE!" Takeba panicked.

Wicke was not enjoying where this was going and she was the one driving. "Hold on…!"

"Xatu! Light Screen!" Scott called out his Xatu, using its Light Screen to protect the helicopter form harm. It was a close call but it saved them.

"This is an unfavorable fight for some of us…" Grace motioned to the few who did not have flying types on their team strong enough to carry them. "Scott, Takeba! We'll take these guys on. The rest of you, keep going!"

"You sure?" Sophocles asked.

"Go!" Grace jumped out of the helicopter while calling out Salamance, landing on its back.

"Ditto! Honchkrow!" Takeba called out Ditto so it could Transform into Honchkrow, which she used as a mount to fly, leaving her Honchkrow around so it could fight. Scott had to hitch a ride on Salamance with Grace to keep Xatu in the fight. This allowed the others to fly towards Aether without any concern.

"The three of us are more than enough for you!" Grace said smugly.

"Hah…" Proton just let out a small laugh. "You think your paltry force will be enough to stop me? You really don't understand the true might of Rainbow Rocket."

Scott turned his gaze to the north, eyes narrowing as he could foresee something coming from that direction. "…That's not good. We're not alone."

"That's a little too cryptic to be saying right now." Takeba frowned.

Who was en route to Aether now as well?

Another helicopter. But this one held a different force that came for their own selfish reasons….

"AETHER FOUNDATION! You no longer need to be worried about this foul Team Rainbow Rocket? Why? Because your Venus has arrived to save you all from their peril!"

Cipher.

.

.

Next Time: Aether Assault.


	53. Chapter 53: Aether Assault

Ultra Alola.

They only had a small force when going to take back the Aether Foundation from Team Rainbow Rocket. Last time, it was just Moon and Lillie pushing against the force of Rainbow Rocket, along with some help from Guzma. Moon wasn't here…so Lillie had to take charge in her stead. Not having Moon by her side did make this a bit scary, but Lillie had to brave this just like Moon would. She wasn't alone either; Hau, Guzma, and Lusamine were with her. Colress was here…for some reason, but he was clearly on their side so she wouldn't turn that help down. "…" Lillie stared as they approached the foundation, frowning at its overrun appearance.

"Not gettin' cold feet now, are ya kid?" Guzma stared at Lillie.

"No." Lillie shook her head, gripping the edges of her skirt. "I just…well, I'd be lying if I wasn't a little afraid. Moon was the one who lead the charge and I just followed her. She even did most of the work…and all I ended up doing was get in the way."

"I'm sure she doesn't feel that way." Lusamine offered a tentative smile.

"…" Lillie wasn't so sure.

"We'll be approaching within the next two minutes. I suggest you all prepare yourselves." Colress said.

"It'll be fine, Lillie." Hau said with a confident grin. "I'll be here to protect you, too. After all, you're part of the reason I wanted to get stronger too!"

"Thanks, Hau." Having a friend by her side did make Lillie feel a little better. "I wish Gladion were here too…" But there was no time to think about that. They were arriving and…as expected, there were still a few Rainbow Rocket grunts around the perimeter. "We're here…!"

"We'll be landing. Good luck getting inside." Colress said as he lowered the helicopter, allowing the group of four to jump out.

"Round 2!" Guzma exclaimed while calling out his trusted Golisopod. "I'll take care of these grunts out here. You guys run along inside."

"Okay. Guzma…" Lusamine looked back once. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet. Prez." Guzma said with a small scoff. "We ain't done yet."

Guzma was right. They were only just getting started. Lillie, Hau, and Lusamine made their way into the main main building in their attempt to make it to Lusamine's former office. It wasn't long before they were greeted by two more Rainbow Rocket grunts, but these two had a bit of a score to settle. "I can handle this…!" Lillie said, channeling Moon's confidence.

"Are you sure?" Lusamine looked back to her daughter.

"No doubt they locked the door…" Hau said while staring at the closed door ahead. They'd have to find some way to unlock the door before moving on.

"I can hold them here." Lillie said firmly, clutching onto one of the pokeballs Moon left behind.

Lusamine and Hau were a bit reluctant to leave Lillie, but she clearly wanted to fight. "We'll be back soon…" Lusamine said while she and Hau went off, leaving Lillie alone with two Rainbow Rocket Grunts.

"Well well…" The female grunt stepped forward. It was a male and female duo and these two were feeling a bit personal about it. She casually tossed a Pokeball forward to call out Nidoking, while her male associate called out Rhydon. "We just keep running into you."

"Huh?" Lillie was confused. "What do you mean…?" It was admittedly hard to tell if she had done anything to these grunts in particular. All non-admin members of Rainbow Rocket kind of looked the same. But in response to being faced with two Pokémon, Lillie sent out Moon's Decidueye and her own Clefairy.

"Oh! I guess you really don't know where you're friend ended up." The male grunt said with a slight smirk. "Turns out she landed in an Alola that's pretty identical. We scoped the area out and ran into her. You'll probably be surprised at what we saw."

"…" Lillie was silent but cautious. She wasn't sure if she'd like what she was about to hear. "You didn't hurt Moon did you?!"

"Not at all!" The female clasped her hands together mockingly. "It turns out that she forgot a lot of things! But she was very cozy with another you when we found her."

"H-Huh?" Lillie's eyes widened at this information. "She was…with another me…?" That should have meant she was in good hands, but at the same time she felt a twinge of jealously at the same time. "So she's safe…!"

"Oh no, not at all." The male grunt shook his head. "I don't know how you knew that there weren't a lot of us here at the moment, but didn't you ever wonder where the rest of us went? Giovanni has gone to that Alola himself to personally take back what she left here with."

"What!?" Lillie gasped. Moon was in danger. "I won't let anyone hurt Moon!"

"You should be worried about yourself first, little girl…" The female grunt said with a malicious grin. "We have some frustrations to work out and you're the perfect target!"

.

.

The sky team of Takeba, Scott, and Grace decided to deal with Proton in the air above the Aether Foundation. Takeba used Ditto to transform into Honchkrow so she could have something to situate herself on, while Grace and Scott rode on Salamance, Scott able to use his Xatu freely. Rainbow Rocket was the least of their concerns as a third; uninvited party barged in before the fight could even get started! Cipher! "Are you serious!?" Takeba palmed her face. "They decided to come out of their hiding hole now!?"

"I was hoping that wouldn't be the case, but it seems like things are about to get messy." Scott narrowed his eyes. They could always try and shoot Cipher down but…they still had Proton to worry about as well.

"Seriously? We have to deal with them now?" Grace rolled her eyes. This was quite honestly the last thing she wanted to deal with.

"Who's that?" Proton lifted a brow at the third partying making their way uninvited. "I guess it doesn't matter. We'll shoot them down too!"

"Venus! You egotistical diva!" Ferma groaned as Venus gave away their location. "We were supposed to sneak in! S-N-E-A-K! Not alert the enemy that we were coming in!"

"Oops." Venus blinked a few times. Her ego often did get the best of her. But she shrugged it off and gave a wide smile. "I simply couldn't help myself! Everyone has to know when I've entered their lives! I am everyone's Venus after all!"

"Agh…" Trudly just sighed. Venus was as difficult to work with as ever and because of that, they had far too many eyes on them. "Now they see us coming!? What do we do?"

"This was inevitable." Ardos said while adjusting his shades. "I will take care of this. Aerodactyl, let us be off." Ardos opened the helicopter door and called out Aerodactyl, leaping onto the prehistoric Pokémon as it flew forward, Mega Evolving in the process. Aerodactyl roared as it sped towards the Ultra Guardians and Rainbow Rocket. "Stone Edge!" Numerous stones appeared around Aerodactyl's body and flew towards all parties involved, causing them to panic and fly out of the way.

"He's attacking all of us!?" Takeba gasped as everyone had to move.

"Great, now we have this to worry about. Salamance, Fire Blast!" Grace commanded. Salamance reared its head back, releasing a gigantic blast of flame that covered a wide area. All opposing parties fled just as fast, but she managed to strike down the Zubats that numerous Rainbow Rocket grunts had, forcing them out of the battle.

"Xatu, Air Slash!" Scott shouted.

"Crobat, Air Cutter!" Proton exclaimed. The two attacks were fired off and met in the middle of the sky, causing an explosion that left a thick cloud of smoke, shrouding all parties from view of each other.

"Scott?" Grace called.

"On your left, Takeba!" Scott exclaimed.

"Honchkrow, Drill Peck!" On Takeba's command, Honchkrow spun around like a drill, shooting forward to strike whatever was on its left. To her surprise, it ended up clashing against Aerodactyl's Aerial Ace. "Eep!" Takeba gasped from the foe she ended up encountering from the smoke. Honchkrow was able to push back a bit to avoid being damaged. "Geez!"

Proton adjusted his hat a bit. This situation was honestly a bit annoying, but he found the enjoyment in it as well. "This is a fun way to pass the time. I don't mind sending people for a burial at sea. It'll be a good reminder for no one to mess with the ugly side of Rainbow Rocket." He then made use of his communication device. "We've got some uninvited guests coming your way. This is going to get rather hectic."

.

.

While Ardos dealt with the battle in the sky, the rest of Cipher needed a plan now that Venus revealed their locations. "So what's our next move, now that the enemy knows we're here?" Ferma glared at Venus, who just gave a causal shrug.

"I say we crush them all!" Dakim yelled.

"Don't be an idiot." Nascour shook his head. "There are far too many opponents for us to make use of our full power. We don't have the means to crush every single person here without expending our own energy."

"But that isn't to say we won't be doing combat." Ein continued. "Since we can no longer avoid having eyes on us, we'll have to slip under the radar and find the perfect way to open an Ultra Wormhole from here. If we can manage that, then we'll be in prime position to continue our plan. We still have Shadow Pokémon and Power we can use. This is our gambit."

"That's what happens when you throw away everything on a hailmary." Venus filed her nails.

"I like the groove to this beat. If it's a dance off they want, then I will take them all down!" Miror B said excitedly. This situation felt like a game to him, which was ironic since he was responsible for kick starting Cipher back up in the first place.

"So we go in and do what we can to avoid too much trouble. I can work with that." Gorigan gave a faint chuckle. "This'll be cake."

"While you all take on the upper floors, I'll head down below. Surely there are some secrets that can aid this last ditch effort." Honestly, he hated that they had to resort to this…especially now that things at Aether were chaotic with Rainbow Rocket's arrival. But this was their only chance to bounce back from their defeat at Mt. Lanakila.

.

.

RR Giovanni was standing in Lusamine's office. Lusamine was tied up in a corner, unable to do much without her Pokémon and with Mewtwo keeping a watchful eye over her. "You won't succeed." Lusamine told Giovanni. Despite the treatment of her so far…he didn't harm her yet. Yet being the keyword since her life was the ultimatum for Moon to show up.

"I already did once. This Alola is practically the same as the previous one. So I doubt I will be stopped. If they don't arrive before our time is up, then you're in danger and they know that." RR Giovanni said calmly. And just as he said that, a screen popped up that showed the Ultra Guardians closing in. His gaze naturally focused on Moon and…Lillie. "And…it seems like history repeats itself."

"Lillie…! Moon!" Lusamine tried to squirm about in her seat. "What do you mean history repeats?"

"This happened before. The girl and your daughter attempted to challenge my Rainbow Rocket organization. They made it quite far, if I have to be honest." Giovanni said while keeping his back to Lusamine. "They even managed to make it to me, but that is when things went awry. Before I could expand my empire, Moon escaped with the key to that machine and fell through an Ultra Wormhole. That key is the only way to permanently power that machine so we can advance through other worlds…our means now keep us limited, but I'm sure I don't need to explain the specifics to you, you help build the machine after all."

"The Ultra Guardians will not lose to you." Lusamine said firmly. "You'll regret stepping foot into Alola. Both of them."

"I doubt that." Giovanni shook his head. "They may have arrived now, but that doesn't mean they get an easy trip. Only Moon is allowed to come forth."

"…What are you saying?" Lusamine narrowed her eyes. She felt her stomach drop as her motherly instincts already told her what Giovanni meant.

Giovanni pressed a button to activate the intercom, speaking to all members of Rainbow Rocket within the Aether Foundation. "Attention all members of Team Rainbow Rocket. The girl is approaching and she brought her friends as well. We only want her. Her friends are not needed. That includes the daughter and son of the President."

Lusamine's eyes widened. That was exactly what she was afraid of. "No! You can't!"

.

.

While everyone was approaching Aether by air, Team Rocket decided not to use their dandy hot air balloon just this once. They were underwater, piloting a large Magikarp submarine with their legs, cycling to power it. "I think we made a good call…" Jessie said while peering through the scope that gave them a view of what happened above.

"You said it! I'm very glad we decided to go in from below…" James was sweating at the sky battle above. "Our Team Rocket hasn't even arrived yet and it's already this much of a battlefield."

"We gotta be extra careful." Meowth had to cement that fact in. "Good thing we're sneakin' in from below." As former undercover employees of Aether, they knew a way in that wasn't the front entrance. They were very lucky nobody else tried to come down the same way, otherwise they'd be in a load of trouble…

.

.

Ash and the others were nearing the landing pad of the Foundation. They only had a few moments to discuss what their plan was going to be, since they had a lot on their plate now with Cipher joining the fray. It was only going to get more hectic from this point on and they were aware of that. "So what's our plan!?" Marcus asked. "We got a lot of ground to cover and a lot of grunts to take down."

"First we have to make sure the Pokémon under care are all safe." Gladion said. "They're just as important and I don't want them getting hurt in the crossfire."

"I agree." Elizabeth nodded. "I can take care of that. Anyone feeling up for joining?"

"Course." Marcus nodded. "We'll handle those guys, so just focus on getting to Giovanni!"

"Gladion and I will go with Moon." Lillie said firmly. "Giovanni won't get her as easily as he thinks!"

"Yeah, plus he's got a lot to answer for, trying to put Mother's life in danger." That angered Gladion the most. He refused to lose another family member.

"I'll go with you guys!" Ash added.

"Then we'll punch a hole through Rainbow Rocket's main forces." Kiawe said with a grin. He looked to Lana, Sophocles, and Mallow. "Are you guys with me?"

"Of course!" Lana beamed.

"Yeah! Sophocles was in for this all the way.

"I'll do my best!" Mallow had to force herself to say that. In truth she was still a bit worried about her contribution to the team after Cipher's incident. But she couldn't afford to bring anyone down right now.

"So we have our plan!" Ash was ready to get this started.

"There's a 60% chance this will at work out as we plan-roto…" Rotom gave an untimely estimation. But that just meant it was very worried about how things would pan out. This situation was extremely dangerous but they all knew that. There was simply just no turning back at this point.

"We'll make it 100%!" Ash immediately replied.

"Yeah…yeah!" Moon gave a firm nod. "We can do this! Let's land!"

"We're landing! Please be careful, everyone!" Wicke said.

"This will not be an easy battle…" That was Faba's warning.

They finally arrived on the landing platform of the Aether Foundation and were naturally met with numerous Rainbow Rocket Grunts, all calling forth various Pokémon that were likely stolen; Zubat, Golem, Magmar, Tentacruels, you name it. They had Pokémon from all over. Ash was the first one to make a move, throwing two Pokeballs into the air the moment his Ride Garchomp landed. "Melmetal! Incineroar!" The two behemoths of his team were called out. "Double Iron Bash! Fire Blast!" Melmetal flexed once and began to spin its body around, shooting its large, geared arms forward to punch several pokemon at once with its massive strength.

"W-What is that thing!?" Several grunts exclaimed, watching in horror as their Pokémon were all taken out in one shot. That didn't last long as Incineroar was up next, sprinting forward as the belt of flame around its naval began to ignite.

"ROAR!" Incinroar thrusted its body forward, releasing a gigantic blast of flame to follow up on the Double Iron Blast. The strong two attacks left an impression the Rainbow Rocket Grunts that didn't know what they were up against.

"Leave the rest of them to us!" Kiawe said as he, Mallow, Lana, and Sophocles stayed behind. Marowak, Vikavolt, Primarina, and Tsareena were the Pokémon taking charge in against the grunts of Rainbow Rocket.

"We'll handle the Pokémon!" Marcus shouted as he called out Zangoose, while Elizabeth went with Luxray for this one. The Ultra Guradians had their plan and set it into motion as quickly as they could. That was less chance of anything being interrupted but they had to stay vigilant, because they had no idea what was in store for them.

"That leaves heading for Giovanni to us…" Moon steeled herself. Last time she may have failed, but that wasn't going to be the case this time. She wanted to protect this Alola as best she could, because Lillie was here.

"We don't have time to lose." Gladion told them. "They might be keeping a majority of Rainbow Rocket busy outside, but who knows what we'll have to deal with. They're crawling all over like they own the place. It makes me sick."

"We'll kick them out soon!" Ash was firm in this statement. "Let's go save Lusamine!"

"Yeah!" Moon, Lillie, Rotom, and Gladion joined in on this.

.

.

Archer and Arianna were watching the Ultra Guardians land and raid Aether. The second in command of Rainbow Rocket stroked his chin, watching the kids and their older friends get to work. He did so with a malicious smile. "So, they've finally come to play, have they?"

"Giovanni says he only needs the girl. But we can take that one step further." Arianna said. "The truth is that he only needs the key she has….and he already said that she's the only one that matters, we can get rid of the rest."

"It sounds like you've an idea in mind." Archer turned his gaze to Arianna, who held a confident smirk. "How do you want to play this?"

"Petrel's off wandering on his own…but we have plenty of cards at our disposal. We can crush the forces of this Alola and claim it for Rainbow Rocket as well." Arianna let out a sinister laugh. "Let's see which of us can take out the most brats, hm? Our little foot soldiers are only going to accomplish so much. We already know we're the ones who have to do all the heavy lifting."

"I agree." Archer turned and started to walk off. "Proton is busy dealing with the guests coming our way. So it falls to us to handle these brats and show them why the Rocket Empire will not be stopped. Starting with those four at the front entrance. I'll gladly take care of them."

.

.

In the Pokémon Preserve of the Aether Foudnation, Team Rainbow Rocket was set up just as everyone thought. They were currently in the midst of attempting to capture the pokemon that needed recovery since they were easy prey. However, there was one Pokémon that was a far cry different than the rest. A sleeping Drapion that was already used in a plot once before and kept watch ever seen…that Drapion's eyes slowly opened upon hearing the commotion. There was a reason it was secluded from the others. It roared, a dark aura invisible to the human eye flaring up, catching the attention of everyone within.

.

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Next Time: Rocket Revolution.


	54. Chapter 54: Rocket Revolution

Ultra Alola.

There was currently a battle on two fronts happening, all within the Aether Foundation. On one side, Ash, Moon, and the others were currently battling Team Rainbow Rocket in an effort to save Lusamine and find some way to eject Giovanni from their world. One the other, Lillie was leading the charge in Moon's stead, to take out the lingering members of Rainbow Rocket. Neither side was aware of what the other was doing, but their joint efforts needed to be enough to take out this growing organization before it grew too large.

Lillie was currently facing off against the two Rainbow Rocket grunts that encountered Moon and the other Lillie in that Alola. Nidoking and Rhydon vs Decidueye and Clefairy. Lillie was a little nervous since she didn't have the experience in battle that Moon did, but she had to try. "Okay, Decidueye, use Spirit Shackle!" Following Lillie's command, the owl flew into the air, using one of its quills as an arrow imbued with ghastly energy. The arrow was fired at breakneck speeds towards, soaring towards Rhydon in an attempt to skewer it!

"Stone Edge," The female grunt scoffed while flipping her hair. Rhydon let out a roar, slamming its fist into the ground. This caused numerous azure stones to pop out, destroying the incoming Sprit Shackle while slamming into Decidueye and Clefairy's bodies, sending them sprawling backwards. "Hah!"

"Decidueye! Clefairy…! Are you okay?!" Lillie panicked a bit. She had only seriously battled like this at Moon's side. She was on her own for the first time and it was difficult. Luckily for Lillie, it was going to take far more than that to take out her two Pokémon, much to her relief. "Thank goodness."

"This one is hardly a threat." The male RR grunt scoffed at Lillie. "At least the other one had a Z-ring. There's nothing to be concerned about here."

"Huh…?" Lillie looked up, focusing her emerald gaze on the two grunts. This was the second time they mentioned the 'other' her. The one that was supposedly with Moon. "The other me…has a Z-ring…?"

"And it's still hard to tell if she was more of a threat than _you _are at this point or not." The male said with a mocking smile. As far as they were concerned, this girl was just a Wooloo lining up for the slaughter. "Nidoking, Poison Jab!" Nidoing acted on a dime, a purple aura swirling around its fist as it sprinted forward, aiming its poisonous fist for the small Fairy type!

"I might be weak…" Lillie was fully aware of the limits of her abilities, but she had to improve in a short time to help Moon. "But we won't be beaten! Clefairy, Disarming Voice!" Clefairy held its ground as Nidoking approached, letting out a loud cry that echoed through the area of the Aether Foundation. The noise was extremely irritating, causing Nidoking and Rhydon to cover their ears in agony. "Now, Leaf Blade!" With this opening, Decidueye flew towards Rhydon while one of its arms lit up in a green hue. This momentum allowed the archer to slam its arm against Rhydon's hard body, throwing it backwards with a considerable amount of force. "Yes!" Lillie cheered from her successful tactic.

"Don't get cocky, kid! Megahorn!" Nidoking was still active and lunged at Decidueye, slamming its now elongated horn into the archer's frame! This attack was so strong; Decidueye was thrown backwards violently, slamming right into Clefairy as well!

"Ah!" Lillie's eyes widened as her two Pokémon were reeling from that impact.

"Rhydon! Stone Edge!" Rhydon recovered pretty fast from the Leaf Blade. As soon as it stood up it slammed its foot on the ground, causing numerous stones to rise up in an effort to strike the opposing pair once again. They didn't have the time to recover for the incoming Stone Edge! But that was when a whirlpool sliced through the rocks, catching Rhydon and Nidoking in its wake, blowing them away for a moment. "Huh!?"

"What was that!?" The female grunt grumbled.

Lusamine walked forward with her Milotic slithering alongside her. Her eyes were narrowed as she stood in front of Lillie. "I can't let you do that."

"Mother? I thought I said I could handle this…!" Lillie said as Clefairy and Decidueye stood back up.

"I know…but I can't let you charge into things on your own." Lusamine said while looking back towards Lillie. Their relationship was still rocky at best, but she was making an effort to be a better mother. That first step began with protecting her daughter. "But you are my daughter, and if I want to do right by you, I have to protect you! This battle is mine too. We have to do this together…even if you don't feel the same way, I have to try."

"Mother…" Lillie was speechless. That was the first time her mother had ever said anything like that to her and meant it.

"Tch. This family drama is making me sick!" The female grunt exclaimed. "If you want to fight together, that's fine. We'll just take you both down together and put an end to this!"

.

.

Alola:

The skies above the Aether Foundation were alight with the free for all of Scott, Grace, and Takeba vs Proton, vs. Ardos. The last thing any of them needed was this, but the only one who got some enjoyment out of this was Proton. "Crobat, Air Cutter!" Proton commanded. Crobat used its speed to fly past Salamance, Xatu, Honchkrow, and Aerodactyl, spinning around to release numerous blades of wind to strike all parties. The damage was pretty high, with Grace and Scott being in the most danger due to Salamance being their ride. "If you surrender now, I promise to make it as painless as possible." Considering this was the man who used his own Weezing as a bomb that was highly unlikely.

"Can it with your $20 haircut!" Takeba scoffed while pointing forward. "Honchkrow, use Mirror Move!" Honchkrow flew around before releasing an Air Cutter towards Aerodactyl and Crobat, but they were fast enough to avoid it much to Takeba's dismay. But she wasn't alone so her shortcomings were covered.

"Xatu, Future Sight!" Xatu's eyes gave off a bright blue glow. There was nothing that happened immediately, as it was sending an attack into the nearby future. This was a smart move on Scott's end, as he was certain it would come in handy when they needed it most. But because an attack was sent into the future, it was currently no good to them now and Ardos planned to exploit that.

"You should be more concerned with the present!" Ardos exclaimed. "Aerial Ace!" Even though this battle was considered a free for all at first, he had an idea, which focused solely on taking out those brats that should have been defeated on Mt. Lanakila. Aerodactyl flew forward at incredible speeds, slashing Xatu with its wings and knocked it out of the sky.

"Xatu!" Scott shouted worriedly. The psychic bird was able to recover, but it did sustain a lot more damage that it would have liked in that moment.

"You." Ardos turned to look at Proton, who was hanging out the edge of the helicopter. "Cipher has no quarrel with Rainbow Rocket. But these brats plan to stand in both of our ways. So how about a little truce to ensure we can properly erase the trash that stands before us?"

"Hmm…" Proton looked like he was actually considering this.

"Hey! No! That's not allowed!" Grace said while pointing her hand forward. "Fire Blast!" Salamance reared its head back, releasing a gigantic blast of fire towards Crobat and Aerodactyl. The two Pokémon barely managed to evade the scorching attack, and this in turn only further fueled Proton's decision. "

"You know what? I think that's a fun idea." The Rainbow Rocket executive said with a menacing grin. "I hate it when kids try to stand up to adults. I think they need to learn their place in this world."

"This world is our world!" Grace narrowed her eyes. "And we're not going to let you take it from us or Moon."

"Pretty words won't stop us." Proton said while tipping his hat. "After you, my new friend."

"Heh…" Ardos' eyes had a sinister glint, visible even from behind his shades. "Thunder Fang." The prehistoric Pokémon shot forward, making a beeline towards Honchkrow. But this only lasted for a few seconds, for this was a fake out to actually bite down on Salamance's midsection.

"Salamance! Hold on!" Grace grit her teeth as her dragon thrashed about, almost throwing her and Scott off instinctively from the pain.

"Cross Poison!" Proton yelled. What happened next was a surprising turn of events. It looked like Crobat was about to follow up on Aerodactyl's attack, but in reality…it struck Aerodactyl! Crobat landed a fierce X slash with its wings across Aerodactyl's body, forcing the mega evolved pokemon to fly backwards, inflicted with poison as well!

"What!?" Everyone was surprised at what Proton just did.

"Uh…what just happened?" Takeba asked, scratching the back of her head.

"What is the meaning of this!? We made a truce!?" Ardos snarled towards Proton.

"And you believed that? Don't make me laugh." Proton let out a condescending scoff. "I have no interest in working with anyone. The only thing that matters to me is the success of Team Rainbow Rocket. I will personally crush anything and everyone that attempts to stand in the way of Giovanni's ambition. You're far too eager to place your trust in another person when I had no respect for you to begin with."

"You..!" Ardos narrowed his eyes at Proton and the audacity he had.

"Hey, if they start fighting, do you think they'll take each other out?" Takeba whispered to Scott and Grace.

"That would be amazing…" Grace said, but she wasn't about to hold her breath on that.

"Giovanni's reign is the only thing in the world that matters." Proton said while tipping his hat to Ardos. "So you'll have to forgive me for not wanting to partner up with some two-bit villain."

"I completely agree." A different voice cut through the tension, causing all to look in the direction it came from. There was a Team Rocket plane coming through, with Matori at the helm. "Giovanni's ambition is the most important thing in this world, which is precisely why we cannot allow interlopers from another world to tarnish the name he's built up."

"For real!?" Grace groaned. "Now Team Rocket is actually here!? Anyone else wanna join this cluster of people!?" She was actually getting tired of this. This battle was becoming far too huge to keep up with, and they were just on the outer perimeter.

.

.

Speaking of Team Rocket, James, Jessie, and Meowth snuck into the lower labs of the Aether Foundation via a secret entrance. They only knew it about it during their time posing as employees, but they learned a lot when working under Faba. Now the trio was slowly sneaking around a somewhat familiar area, but it was crawling with RR Grunts who would no doubt attack once they were spotted. "They're everywhere…" James reported, hiding behind a few boxes.

"Ugh, look at their outfits." Jessie rolled her eyes in disgust. "They really thought that outfit was okay? It's an affront to everything that Team Rocket stands for! And they call themselves elites…"

"I don't know if they actually said that…" Meowth said with a sweat drop. "But now dat we're in here, what's the plan…?"

"There are far too many for us to take down." James was looking over the numbers. It was staggering how many grunts were actually infesting the Aether Foundation. He then came to a halt when rounding a corner, coming across a curious sight. "Wait…!"

"What is it?" Jessie said while peering around the corner, over James, while Meowth was under him. What was the sight they saw? Petrel and a few other grunts putting an unconscious Acerola into a room and making sure to tie her down to a chair.

"That should do it." Petrel said while stroking his chin. "And now that we have this hostage…" The Rocket Executive spun around and in what was like a flash, he turned…into Acerola! "And now, I've assumed her identity!" This Rocket Executive was a master of disguise. It didn't matter who he had to impersonate, he could do it.

"What the…!?" James almost shouted, but his voice was muffled by Jessie who reacted just in time. Their position was nearly compromised because of James' surprise, but it was save din the nick of time.

"So what's the plan, sir?" A grunt asked Petrel, a bit weirded out by what they just witnessed.

"Those foolish kids don't know about this trick up their sleeve." Petrel said while beginning to walk forward. "So I'm going to lure them down here under the guise that Acerola was able to escape, but she was unable to save her Pokémon. Once they follow me down here, you all will ambush them! It's a perfect plan! So you get into position…I'll need a few of you to chase me to make it look more convincing."

"Yes, sir! Er…"

"It is still sir!" Petrel exclaimed before getting back into character. "Now then, let us begin!" With that, Petrel disguised as Acerola walked off, a few grunts following him to the elevator to enact their plan. The upside of this action, was that the number of grunts in the area lessened greatly.

"So…they're planning to fool the twerps by using her…" Meowth muttered.

"No way those goody two shoes won't fall for it." Jessie scoffed. "They have to help everyone they see…"

"I think this is our chance." James said with a confident smirk. "They're so concerned with fighting against the twerps, they don't know we're right under their noses!"

"Now I like where you're head's at!" Meowth had a grin of his own forming.

"Rainbow Rocket needs to prepare for trouble…" Jessie began.

"And make it double." James finished. This was the start of Team Rocket's attack!

.

.

Things were going relatively well outside for Kiawe, Lana, Sophocles, and Mallow. They were capable of taking out numerous grunts on the outside of the Foundation. Even so, it felt like the numbers of Rainbow Rocket just weren't ending. "Ugh, they don't stop coming!" Mallow complained.

"I know! But they should be running low…that's what I thought a few minutes ago…" Lana frowned. Sandy and Primarina were working hard. The grunts weren't too hard to fight, but it was an issue for the sole reason that they were still outnumbered at the end of the day. They took out one grunt and several more popped up.

"We're the better fighters…so quality isn't the issue here." Sophocles noted. "But there are so many of them, our Pokémon might get tired before long." Just as he said that, several more grunts appeared with numerous pokemon at the ready. It was clear that tiring them out was their plan. They had the advantage in numbers and were definitely planning to use it.

"So that's their plan…" Kiawe caught on and stood behind his Marowak. "They think they can wear us down with numbers? They have another thing coming!" As Rainbow Rocket grunts flooded out of the front doors and surrounded the group, Kiawe allowed his Z-ring to shine brightly.

"Wait, Kiawe! Are you sure!?" Mallow looked to her friend.

"It's now or never. We'll never break through at this rate!" Kiawe exclaimed and he had a point. If they didn't break through now they'd never catch up to Ash and the others.

"He's right." Lana nodded and crossed her arms and her Waternium-Z started to shine. "We have to help the others too! We can do this!"

"Okay!" Sophocles nodded and stood with Vikavolt, letting his Buginium-Z shine.

"All together!" Mallow joined in with Tsarenna. The group let their Z-rings shine and resonate with their fellow Pokémon, all taking aim at the numerous Rainbow Rocket Grunts that flooded towards them!

"_**INFERO OVERDRIVE!"**_

"_**BLOOM DOOM!"**_

"_**SAVAGE SPINOUT!"**_

"_**HYDRO STORM!" **_

The four attacks of Fire, Grass, Bug, and Water all shot forth in powerful beams that exploded against the Pokémon of the Rainbow Rocket Grunts. While some of them were stronger than others, they were no match for the combined force of four Z-moves. Even though some Rainbow Rocket Grunts were capable of using Z-moves as well, this was nothing compared to that of the four that were used on them, leaving nothing but fainted Pokémon at their feet. This caused the grunts to flee without a second thought once the battle had gotten too much for them.

"I thought that would never end…" Mallow let out a sigh. It was a shame that in order to break ahead they had to use their Z-moves, but now they could keep going! The only downside is that their Pokémon did need a slight breather after such a long and exhaustion battle that kept going in waves like that. "We have to catch up before it's too late. I'm sure they could use our help."

"Right!" The others nodded, however, before they could make it too far, a blast of flame interrupted their progress. "Huh?!"

"I didn't think it was possible to use so many Z-moves all at once." Archer said while slowly approaching the four, all by his lonesome. The only Pokémon at his side was his Houndoom, maw blazing with flames. "But I'm glad we were able to push you to that. Now I don't have to worry about any of that when I take you out for myself."

"Wh…?" Lana turned towards Archer. "Who are you?"

"My name is Archer, second in command to Giovanni." Archer explained. "Giovanni said that we didn't have to leave a single one of you alive. So I've taken his orders to heart. Four in one? Simple."

"That's pretty cocky of you, thinking you can take the four of us at once!" Kiawe barked.

"Think?" Archer's expression lifted with malicious joy. "Oh, dear child. You don't know how many trainers I've taken care of all on my own…"

.

.

Next Time: Rocket Revolution Part 2


	55. Chapter 55: Rocket Revolution, Part 2

Ultra Alola.

Lillie and Lusamine were prepared to do battle against two Rainbow Rocket Grunts. While Lillie was confident she could take them alone, she never expected her mother to want to try and protect her. She couldn't refuse that request, so here they stood…battling together to help Moon. It was a strange twist of fate, but it could have been for the best. It was Clefairy and Milotic vs Rhydon and Nidoking. Lusamine had a score to settle with Rainbow Rocket for starting this entire situation in the first place and she intended to pay it back. "Milotic, Aqua Tail!" Miltoic slithered forward at surprisingly fast speeds, rings of water swirling around its tail. Before the two grunts could even make a command, Milotic slammed its tail into Nidoking, throwing it backwards.

"What the…!?" The female grunt gasped as her Nidoking was knocked flat in a matter of a single hit. Lillie's lack of experience made her an easy target, but Lusamine and her Milotic were not here to play any sort of games.

"Rhydon, Mega Horn!" The male exclaimed. Rhydon's horn grew in size and it stampeded forward, lunging ahead to slam its horn right into Milotic's body.

"Twister." Lusamine commanded. Miltoic pointed its tail forward and spun it around. This action created a violent twister that struck Rhydon. Rhydon did its best to stay grounded, but the force of the Twister was too much and it was soon lifted off its feet, flying about helplessly in the air. "Ice Beam!" Milotic opened its mouth, firing off a potent beam of ice that struck Rhydon in the chest, causing it to crash into the ground violently.

"W-What is this woman…!?" The female grunt asked with a sweat drop.

"We can't even touch her…" The male said while gritting his teeth. No wonder Giovanni was so intent on ensuring Lusamine couldn't get in their way, this woman's power was something else.

"Wow…" Lillie mouthed silently. She knew her mother was strong, even giving Moon a lot of trouble when they did battle twice. But it was reassuring when that might wasn't being used for oppressive means. This might was being used to…protect her? For a moment, Lillie was questioning if she even needed to be present for this double battle.

Lusamine crossed one foot in front of the other, placing a hand on her hip. Her head lifted up slightly, her gaze burning a hole into the souls of the two Rainbow Rocket grunts that stood in front of her. "You march into my home, take it over, endanger my daughter and hurt her friend? You've done much more than just incur this mother's wrath. I'm going to ensure that you return that debt in full." The aura coming off of Lusamine was frightening. She had been wronged by Rainbow Rocket and was intent on making sure they didn't get away with this.

"Don't get so cocky! Stone Edge!" Rhydon roared and slammed its fist onto the ground. This prompted numerous stones to rise up, making a fast track towards Milotic and Clefairy to take them both out.

"Twister!" Once again, Milotic created a fast twister. This twister was so potent it destroyed the incoming Stone Edge, now keeping sharp stones flying about in a whirlwind of its own creation. Milotic slammed its tail down, bringing down both the Twister and Stone Edge down upon the two opposing Pokémon for heavy damage, keeping them pinned down.

"Hyper Beam!" Rhydon opened its mouth, releasing a gigantic beam of raw energy. Hyper Beam was so strong it cut through the Twister and Stone Edge, much to Lusamine's surprise. Hyper Beam slammed against Miltoic, causing the beautiful Pokémon to let out a cry of pain as it was flung into the nearest wall.

"Milotic…!" Lusamine gasped. Even her sea serpent was going to need a moment to recover from that.

"Don't let up! Poison Jab!" Nidoking was up next, sprinting towards the downed Milotic to finish it off while it was weak.

Lillie had to make her move. They were so focused on Lusamine's power they completely forgot about her. "Clefairy, Moon Blast!" Clefairy's body gave off an otherworldly shine. Just as Nidoking leapt forward, it was intercepted by Clefairy's Moon Blast, which made it stagger back.

"Forgot about her…Sludge Bomb!" Nidoking recovered from the Moon Blast, now hurling up a toxic orb of sludge that exploded on Clefairy.

"Ah…!" Lillie gasped as Clefairy was thrown backwards.

"Mega Horn!" Seeking the weaker prey, Rhydon now barreled towards Clefairy with full intent to take it out. But it was stopped midway by clashing with Milotic's Aqua Tail. The two were in a fierce struggle as they attempted to overpower the other.

"Earth Power!" While distracted with Rhydon, it left Nidoking free to do whatever it wanted. In this case, it caused the ground to erupt under Milotic and Clefairy. This surge of power blew both Pokémon back towards their trainers, receiving a high amount of damage in the process. Nidoking and Rhydon were standing next to each other menacingly as they managed to swing the battle back into their favor.

"Mother, I…" Lillie was about to apologize, but Lusamine shook her head.

"It's fine. We're not down yet." Lusamine told her daughter.

"That's what you think…" The female said while crossing her arms. She was one of many Rainbow Rocket Grunts who had stolen a Z-ring during the initial invasion wave of Ultra Alola. Now she was going to use it, her ire against the other Lillie fueling her desire to crush this one. The Poisonium-Z resonated with Nidoking, dark purple clouds swirling around them. "You'll drown in these toxic waves! _**ACID DOWNPOUR!**_" Nidoking let out a roar as a tidal wave of poison came down towards Clefairy and Miltoic to take them down.

"Milotic, use Surf!" Lusamine wasn't going to back down; Milotic slammed its tail against the ground, attempting to match the Acid Downpour with a large Surf of its own. The wave wasn't nearly as big, but it was doing the job in slowing it down. Z-moves were strong but they could be beaten…!

Lillie narrowed her eyes and looked to Clefairy, who gave a nod. "Clefairy, use Copycat!" Clefairy focused on Milotic, a glow appearing around its body as it temporarily made use of the last move used. Since this was Surf, Clefairy soon created its own large tidal wave that merged into Milotic's. This turned into an even bigger wave that was able to firmly hold off the Acid Downpour.

"Sitting ducks!" The two grunts grinned. Even if Acid Downpour failed this was an opening they were still waiting for. Rhydon and Nidoking propelled themselves into the air, high above the clashing waves. "This is the end for you!"

"No!" Lillie said with a rare smirk. "This is the end for _you_! Clefairy, use Gravity!" This was a chance she didn't think would come, but now that it was here, she had to take it. Clefairy's eyes shone brightly, intensifying the gravity around Nidoking and Rhydon. This caused their ascend to come to an immediate halt, now plummeting into the middle of the clashing waves.

"Milotic! Finish this with Ice Beam!" Milotic nodded and opened its mouth, firing off one last Ice Beam that completely froze the two waves over. The result was a beautiful purple glacier, where Rhydon and Nidoking were stuck, frozen and defeated. This left the Rainbow Rocket grunts aghast.

"N-No way…!" The female's eyes were wide in fear.

Lusamine took a single step forward. "I think I'll keep these two as souvenirs to add to my collect. I suggest you leave now unless you want to become a part of it." Her voice was low and demanding. This was the only chance she was giving them to flee…and they did without a second thought, dropping the now useless Z-ring in the process. "Whew…"

"We did it, Mother…!" Lillie jumped for joy and clasped her hands together. She even gave Lusamine a hug since it was such a powerful victory.

"Ah…" A hug from her daughter. Lusamine froze for a moment before returning the embrace quickly. "We beat those two, but it's not over yet. We still have to find a way to get Moon back."

Lillie pulled away, giving a firm nod. "Right…! Hang on Moon, we're coming…!"

As the mother and daughter duo resumed their trek through the remodeled Aether Foundation, there was another Ultra Wormhole opening in the Altar of the Moone. A black claw broke through the crack in the sky, slowly tearing it open with all of its might. There was so much light in this world…light it needed to consume.

.

.

Matori was commandeering a Rocket ship, staring down the Ultra Guardians, Proton, and Ardos. Every one of these people only served as an obstacle to Giovanni's greatness and she would get rid of them as swiftly as possible. "You're all in the way. I shall remove you posthaste and take your Pokémon in the name of Team Rocket. Fire."

"Yes, ma'am!" A Rocket grunt nodded.

"Fire? What's she about to…" Takeba didn't get the chance to finish her questions. Multiple barrels emerged from the side of the ship, and began firing missiles at the opposing parties. "ACK!"

"Missiles?!" Grace gasped and tugged Salamance to move in a certain direction, to avoid being caught in the numerous explosions. "Is this chick for real!? It's not that serious!" It was, but this was a bit more brute force than she would have liked to deal with.

"What happened to settling everything through a Pokémon Battle?!" Takeba whined as Honchkrow and Ditto did their best to avoid the nonstop missiles.

"That is only a formality." Matori said while adjusting her glasses. "Team Rocket has bigger ambitions and soon, every Pokémon in this world and beyond will belong to _our _Giovanni." The secretary clarified. The nonstop barrage continued and she truly aimed to shoot everyone down.

"This is problematic…" Scott grit his teeth. They wouldn't be able to last against this type of fire for much longer.

"How about a truce against the lady trying to gun us all down!?" Takeba looked to Proton and Ardos, but they didn't seem interested. This was an all-out war in the skies.

"Never Melt Ice will melt before I team up with an enemy." Proton scoffed and pointed his hand forward. "Crobat, Air Cutter!" His Crobat was extremely agile in the air, weaving through incoming missiles while using Air Cutter to slice right through them. The numerous explosions lit up the sky and the force of them blew all parties away. "This is getting interesting! I can't wait to blow you all out of the sky!" The Air Cutter then slammed against the side of the ship, destroying one of the turrets. This cut down some fire power, but hardly enough to stop the bombardment.

"I don't care about any of you." Ardos said flatly. Aerodactyl remained the king of the skies, flying about wildly to avoid being struck by a missile. Even if they could hold out, the fact of the matter was they didn't have any means to actually stop it.

"Give us your Pokémon and we can end this farce swiftly." Matori spoke to everyone. She had no intentions of stopping even if the ship received some damage. As far as she was concerned, they could do this all day; their budget and supply was extremely high. The money they made from being an underground organization was showing.

"We're not gonna last like this!" Grace told the others.

"We need to hold out for a bit longer." Scott told them. An easier task said than done, but he was confident they could pull out of this situation if they had a bit more time.

"I don't think we have that much time left…" Takeba hated to be the bearer of bad news. "We're stuck on defense! It's not gonna end at this rate! Look at her eyes! Four…cold…evil…"

"I do not have four eyes!" Matori exclaimed. Her cool façade was broken by Takeba's mean words. "Just for that, take out the pink one first." And now she was being petty, too.

"W-Wait a second…!" Takeba's eyes widened as she found a portion of fire concentrated on her and Honchkrow. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!"

This onslaught continued…until a sudden explosion rocked one of the engines of the ship. The explosion was so strong it caused the ship to violently rock around, catching everyone around. "What was that!?" Matori demanded to know. All systems were green when they took off, so what was the issue!?

"We lost an engine in the back left!" A grunt frantically explained. "Something struck us! Another one of our turrets are down!"

"That doesn't make sense." Matori narrowed her eyes. "Every threat is right in front of us. They didn't even get the chance to slip around, so how…"

"There's something approaching rapidly from the rear!" Another grunt explained. When the cameras showed what was coming their way, it caught everyone by surprise.

Even though Team Skull planned to go together, Kasumi was the only one with the ability to go ahead, and she did. She was riding Dragonite, who approached at a breakneck pace. The dragon was impossible to stop since nobody saw it coming. "I don't know what's going on here, but I'm putting an end to it!" Kasumi exclaimed. All she knew was that Team Rocket was the enemy and she saw two of them right there.

"Kasumi!" Scott, Grace, and Takeba all exclaimed at once.

"Another one…?" Proton was starting to get a bit tired of how crowded this situation was getting.

"What…?" Ardos turned and his eyes felt like they were deceiving him. That girl was still alive!? That Dragonite…those eyes…without a doubt, that was XD-002, the girl who was the cornerstone of Cipher's new ambitions, and the girl that turned on them at the very last second. She still drew breath!? Ardos was in disbelief before his lips curled up into a menacing sneer. Coming here was fruitful after all. "At long last, Cipher can resume where we left off!"

"Draco Meteor!" Kasumi commanded. Dragonite lifted its head up, an orange orb of energy charging within its mouth. Dragonite then fired this orb higher into the sky, where then then exploded, raining down as meteors upon Team Rocket, Proton, and Ardos. Kasumi was at least aware who the enemies were and who the allies were. "Get outta the way!"

"Evasive maneuvers!" Proton yelled at his grunts manning the helicopter.

"Evade them!" Matori commanded. Unfortunately for her, the Rocket ship was a bit too large to evade the entirety of the Draco Meteor. Multiple meteors slammed into the surprisingly durable ship, causing it to tremble violently and thrash about all over the place. "Agh!"

"We sustained heavy damage!" A grunt reported. "We have a few engines running still, but it's not looking good! Weapon system offline too!"

"Gh…" Matori couldn't believe how this turned out for them out of nowhere. "We may have no choice but to retreat at this rate…"

"Nice job, Kasumi!" Grace cheered, but Kasumi just glanced away from her, which made her frown.

"Don't relax yet! Crobat, Air Cutter!" While everyone was distracted, Proton made a move. Crobat slashed the air once more, sending numerous blades of wind towards all parties. They all managed to evade, much to his annoyance. "So close!"

"You!" Ardos called out to Kasumi. "You are the one Cipher has been waiting for. We can turn it all around with you."

Kasumi stared at Ardos and…her instincts were telling her to stay far away from this man. She shook her head. "I don't know what you're talking about. But I'd prefer if you stayed very far away from me."

Ardos wasn't hearing that. Instead, Aerodactyl made a beeline for Dragonite. "Oh, but you think I can allow you to slip away again after that trick you pulled before!? You said that as long as your heart beats, you won't lose to us? I wonder how true that will be now!" Matching his rage, Aerodactyl fired off a Stone Edge that clipped Dragonite in several places, causing it to descend from the sky for a bit.

"Aahhhhhh…!" Kasumi cried out.

"KASUMI!" Not wishing to lose her dear friend a second time, Grace clicked her heels on Salamance and it dove forward as fast as it could, Grace clutching the keystone in case they wouldn't make it in time.

"Oh no you don't! Cross Poison!" Proton didn't know what was going on here, but this was something he could take advantage of!

"Super Power!" Takeba exclaimed. Honchkrow bulked up to supreme levels, putting forth every ounce of effort into slamming its body into Crobat's. The attack was so strong, Crobat instantly went flying. "You're not touching her!"

"Now." Scott snapped his fingers. Just in the nick of time, Future Sight finally came into play. Multiple blasts of Psychic energy suddenly poured down from above, laying waste to Aerodactyl and Proton's helicopter. The bombardment of energy struck the tail of the helicopter, causing to spiral out of control.

"Gh!? What gives!?" Proton grunted.

"We're going down…!" The Rainbow Rocket Grunt exclaimed. Down into the ocean at this rate.

"Gh…!" Ardos had no choice but to pull back as well. "Damn psychic!"

Dragonite was able to recover, shaking off the Stone Edge impact relatively easily. Kasumi let out a slight sigh of relief. "That was too close…"

Takeba glanced to Team Rocket. With their ship damaged, they started to head towards the Foundation to land. "Hey! They're trying to land!"

"Not a bad idea…" Ardos grunted. He wasn't going to win like this…so a tactical retreat was best. Plus Aerodactyl would have to rest its wings for a moment anyway. "Ein! Do you hear me? XD-002 has returned! It was fate that brought us to Aether, we must capture her once more. We can exploit her power!" Ardos spoke into his communication device, passing on the information he learned to the others as well.

"After them!" Scott demanded.

"Right!" Grace nodded. "Kasumi, are you…"

"I'm just the first wave." Kasumi responded to Grace. "The heavy hitters of Team Skull are arriving after me. Team Rocket is the enemy, right?"

"That's…technically true." Takeba replied. She wasn't going to go into the logistics of it. "If you see anyone with an R on their clothes, they're the bad guys." It was a broad statement but perfectly covered their situation. "Glad to have you back on our side! You really saved our butts back there!"

"…" Kasumi didn't say anything. Instead she just had Dragonite fly forward towards the Foundation after Ardos and Matori.

"I guess she still doesn't remember…" Grace pouted. But to have Kasumi fighting with them again…it still felt nice.

.

.

Next Time: Together.


	56. Chapter 56: Together

Aether Paradise was a bit of a war zone at the moment. The Ultra Guardians had to face off against Rainbow Rocket, Team Rocket, and Cipher. Every individual team held their own motives yet wanted the other sides to get out of their way. The result was a massive free for all that endangered the paradise, the people in in, along with the Pokémon as well. Marcus and Elizabeth were the ones in charge of making sure the Pokémon in the reserve were unharmed, but they came to a halt in a damaged hallway that showed nothing but destruction. "Yeesh…" Marcus whistled lowly.

There were a few Rainbow Rocket grunts rendered unconscious. They weren't too badly hurt, but it was certainly enough to stay on guard. "Looks like someone beat us here…" Elizabeth muttered. Not everyone was privy to the information that Cipher was joining this battle for their own goal, so they had to make their assumptions.

"This trail of destruction started all the way back there." Marcus pointed. "Considering it ends where we just found it, whatever did this probably passed us a while ago. Man…Lusamine's gonna have a lot of damages to repair when this is over."

"That's a later problem." Elizabeth said before deciding to carefully lead the way forward. It was the way towards the Pokémon reserve, so whatever caused this came from there. They both realized this and silently walked forward. Before they could get too far, however…

"Heeeeelp!" That was Acerola's voice. She was running down from another hallway, chased by a few Rainbow Rocket grunts.

"Huh?!" Elizabeth and Marcus whipped around, only to see a person in need. "Who's that…?" Elizabeth began.

"Someone who needs help!" Marcus said while reaching for a Pokeball instinctively, throwing it forward. "Zangoose, you're up! Quick Attack!"

"Luxray, your turn!" Elizabeth called forth her Luxray in time with Marcus releasing Zangoose. "Thunder Fang!" Zangoose sprinted forward at high speeds while Luxray ran forward, electricity crackling around its maw, taking the shape of sharp jaws. While Zangoose slammed its body into one RR Grunt, Luxray jumped forward, biting down on another Grunt's arm to send them sharp electric shock, rendering them both unconscious.

Acerola finally came to a halt, panting heavily after the mad dash she had to make. "Thank you so much! I was worried they'd catch me again.."

"Again?" Marcus lifted a brow. He remembered Acerola from the time they went to Ula'Ula and spoke to the downer that was Nanu. "Actually, now that I think about it, what are you doing here?"

"Those jerks used me to make sure Uncle Nanu wouldn't come chase them…" Acerola pouted while bouncing from side to side. Perhaps it was the fact she finally found some friendly faces that made her so jovial.

"That's not a bad plan…But you don't have to worry. My friend and I will keep you safe." Marcus said confidently.

"Thank you both so much! I didn't think two kind strangers would come to my aid like this!" Acerola clapped her hands together.

"Huh…" Marcus blinked. "But we've me…"

"They're holding my Pokémon in a lower level…I'm worried what they might do to them…" Changing the topic quickly, Acerola pointed in the direction she came. "I need them back asap…"

"Well, we can't leave her pokemon in peril, can we?" Elizabeth looked to Marcus.

"Yeah, let's go help her first. Stay behind us, we'll keep you safe." Marcus told Acerola as they started to head towards the lower levels. Something about this situation didn't seem right, though…

.

.

Venus sauntered around the halls of the Foundation, careful not to stir up too much trouble. Thanks to her loud ego, Rainbow Rocket was aware of her presence, but that didn't matter too much to her. Any time a Grunt approached her, her Steelix dealt with it handily. "I think splitting up was a wonderful idea, don't you?" She turned to Ferma, who was accompanying her. As the only two women in Cipher, she'd rather have some female company over the brutish male.

Ferma looked back at the trail of destruction Steelix left behind it. Those otherworldly people really didn't stand a chance. "Wow…" The woman mumbled while following alongside Venus. "I don't really get it, but I'm not being paid for my opinion or anything." She shrugged.

"That's no good! Miror B was always stingy." Venus shook her head. "You know, this place isn't so bad. I'll have to have a talk with Ms. Lusamine about this place…"

"That's not why we're here!" Ferma had to remind Venus. "We're here to look for the way of opening Ultra Wormholes! Well…in a way that we can control them. I'm not really comfortable with all the tears in space lingering above this building right now."

"Details, details." Venus waved a hand. "We'll find a way to crawl back from our disgraceful failure on that mountain. And if we don't, my finely manicured fingers will wrap around Ein's neck for dragging me into this mess." Venus looked at her nails as she said this.

"Scary…" Ferma gulped. Definitely did not want to be on Venus' bad side…

Before their conversation could go further, Ardos' message rang through, mentioning how XD-002, otherwise known as Kasumi, was still alive and active. This caused Venus to stop in her tracks, eyes wide in shock. "…That girl is alive?" The shock on her face then turned into a malicious grin. "Good…I so owe her for dragging my reputation in the dirt!" In response to her emotions, Steelix's tail slammed against the floor, damaging it severely and causing the lights to flicker off and on. "Looks like coming here was worthwhile after all~"

.

.

Lana, Mallow, Kiawe, and Sophocles stood off against Archer and his Houndoom. It was more than four against one, but Archer was firmly confident in his ability to dispatch these children. The numbers weren't in his favor, but as far as he was concerned, this fight was still in his court. "Marowak, Shadow Bone!" Marowak flew forward, ghastly embers flaring around its weapon as it moved to club Houndoom over the head.

"Tsareena, use Trop Kick!" Mallow shouted.

"Crunch." Archer commanded. Houndoom opened its mouth, catching Tsareena's leg first, biting down hard to ensure a firm, harsh grip. As Tsareena cried out in pain, Houndoom spun around, sending the grass type right into Marowak, causing the two to fall out of the air. "And Fire Blast!" Houndoom opened its maw once more, releasing a gigantic burst of flame that consumed Marowak and Tsareena, causing the two of them to fly back with burns accompanying them.

"Sandy, use Quick Attack!" Lana commanded. Sandy the Eevee darted along the ground in a zig-zag pattern, moving in such a way to avoid being tracked easy. Sandy then slammed its little body into Houndoom's own, causing it to slide back just slightly. "Nice!"

"Is that the best you can muster?" Archer scoffed. Such a blow barely damaged Houndoom.

"Vikavolt, use Wild Charge!" Vikavolt flew around at high speeds, lightning blazing around its body fiercely as it intended a full body tackle on Houndoom.

"Crunch." Houndoom waited for Vikavolt to try and close the gap. Once it did, the hound jumped to the side, evading the Wild Charge. As soon as its feet touched the ground it sprang forward once more, a dark jaw of energy appearing in front of it. This jaw bit down and exploded on Vikavolt, causing it to fall from the sky.

"Vikavolt!" Sophocles gasped in worry.

"Tsareena, Shaymin! Magical Leaf!" Tsareena recovered from the Fire Blast, and now with Shaymin, fired off numerous leaves at Houndoom. The sharp grass type attack did land, but Houndoom did not budge as the leaves cut along its body. "Now use Stomp!" With the leaves as a distraction, Tsareena leapt into the air with her leg raised high.

"Attacking from above? How predictable! Smog!" Archer grinned heinously. Houndoom opened its mouth and released a poisonous gas from its mouth that polluted the air and Tsareena's system. The queenly grass type had no chance to evade this and fell to the ground, cheeks tinted purple as it was inflicted with poison.

"Oh no…!" Mallow gasped and rushed to Tsareena.

"Aqua Jet!" Lana commanded Primarina. The water type coated itself in a strong veil of water and propelled itself forward, slamming into Houndoom with enough force to send it skidding backwards. With this direct hit proving effective, it circled around once more to try again.

"Crunch!" Houndoom shook off the hit and swayed its body to the side, now biting harshly into Primarina's tail. This Houndoom's strength was nothing to sneeze at as it stopped Primatina's momentum cold. Houndoom spun around, hurling Primarina into Togemaru.

"Flare Blitz!" Marowak tapped its bone on its forehead, surrounding itself into a wheel of light blue fire. With all its might, Marowak spun forward and collided against Houndoom, resulting in a powerful explosion that pushed Houndoom back.

"Nice one, Kiawe!" Mallow said with a slight smile, still looking over Tsareena as she stood up from the poison.

Archer was chuckling as the kid's celebrated that hit. "Foolish children…all you've done is stoke the flames of your downfall." As the smoke cleared, Houndoom was seen standing just fine. In fact, the temperature around its body increased tenfold due to its ability: Flash Fire.

"It absorbed the flames!?" Sophocles gasped.

"Allow me to show you some true firepower." Archer clenched his hand into a fist, extending his arm forward. "INFERNO!" Houndoom let out a howl as its body was surrounded in a fierce orb of flame. This orb of flame then shot forward a gigantic beam of fire that completely trivialized the power of Fire Blast. The Flash Fire boost only made this attack that much more potent.

"Sparkling Aria!" Lana commanded hastily. Primarina was quick to form a large bubble that acted as a shield. The water did a good job as staving off the flames, resulting in steam that quickly filled the area. Somehow, Lana was able to protect everyone from the dangerous Inferno. "Nice job, Primarina!"

But it was far too early to celebrate. Because even though Inferno was protected against once…that didn't mean it couldn't happen a second time. Flash Fire was a permanent boost for as long as Houndroom remained active, so this battle only became that much more steep. "Fire Blast." Even if Inferno didn't do the trick, it did scare them. That's all Archer needed to apply pressure and the steam worked in his favor. A blast of fire connected against Primarina from above and exploded.

"Oh no!" Lana gasped.

The steam cleared and Houndoom snarled. This is when Archer pulled out a keystone from his pocket and held it up. "It's about time I put you children in your place. To surpass that of evolution…and Mega Evolve!" Numerous lights surrounded Houndoom's body as it responded to the Keystone around its neck. Houndoom's entire body began to change; its claws grew sharper, horns larger, the skull around its neck became bigger and more menacing, and its tail wagged. The sun was shining brightly on them as well…

"It's so strong…" Mallow swallowed the nervous lump in her throat. They were being pushed back by a single Pokémon…

"We're stronger together!" Lana reassured everyone.

"That's right!" Sophocles nodded in agreement. "We're not going to lose here!"

"Our flame of determination burns bright!" Kiawe said with a determined voice.

Archer held a malicious grin. He couldn't wait to crush the spirit of these kids. "I'm going to enjoy this. Fire Blast!" Mega Houndoom's ability was Solar Power. Since Alola was a bright and sunny region and this massive battle was occurring in the middle of the day, it had no issues using this sun to its advantage. Fire Blast was now equal in power to Inferno, the gigantic kanji of flame soaring towards the Ultra Guardians.

"Watch out!" Everyone had to dodge as the flames exploded somewhere, lingering fire now sweltering the area. The only downside of Solar Power was that Houndoom suffered natural recoil from every attack...but at this rate, the Ultra Guardians would be defeated before that issue even presented itself.

"Sandy, Double Edge!"

"Togedemaru, Zing Zap!"

Sandy and Togedemaru flung themselves forward. Sandy first, as Togedemaru's Zing Zap would paralyze if it landed. Sandy slammed its body into Mega Houndoom's chest with all it could muster, only managing to make the hell hound skid backwards just slightly. Sandy suffered recoil as a result but looked on as Togemaru flung forward.

"Crunch!" Houndoom created a jaws of darkness in front of its mouth, using those to bite down on Togedemaru without having to touch it. These jaws exploded and the small iron mouse flew back against its will.

"Iron Head!" Marowak's skull hardened to considerable levels and it sprang ahead, slamming its skull into Houndoom's own. It was a direct hit, causing Houndoom's head to recoil for a moment. "Once again!" Kiawe attempted to follow up on this offensive pressure, but…

"Inferno!" Houndoom snapped back faster than expected. It released a point black Inferno at Marowak, this torrent of flames carrying the Alolan Variant into a nearby wall, where it fell onto its stomach, severely damaged. To top it all off, Inferno had a 100% chance to burn as well, so Marowak was suffering a lot.

"Marowak!" Kiawe cried out in worry.

"Surf!" Primarina summoned a massive tidal wave behind its body. It then sent this wave forward, aiming to crash down on Houndoom.

"Fire Blast!" Houndoom released a blast of flame that not only punched through the surf, but evaporated it entirely. The resulting steam clouded the area and rendered sight impossible for a short time. But…

"Stomp!" Tsareena came down with her leg, aiming to slam it down on Houndoom's skull…but she missed as Houndoom jumped back.

"You're horribly predictable!" Archer scoffed. Houndoom lunged forward, biting Tsareena's midsection and ran with the Pokémon in its mouth.

"Zap Cannon!" Sophocles shouted. Vikavolt was off to the side, using the steam to its advantage to prepare a power Zap Cannon. They had to slow this monster down anyway they could. But just as Vikavolt was about to fire, Houndoom hurled Tsareena into it at the last second, resulting in a point blank explosion that sent both Pokémon falling from the sky.

"No…!" Mallow and Sophocles shouted at the same time.

"This isn't good…" Lana mumbled. This one Houndoom was capable of dealing with everything they could dish out! It was so strong that outlasting it wasn't even looking like a viable option at this point.

"Do you understand now, children? Now outmatched you are?" Archer snapped his fingers. This caused Houndoom to use Smog, releasing at thick purple gas from its mouth. This forced everyone to cover their mouths to stop from inhaling the poisonous gas. "Inferno." And with one more snap of his fingers, Houndoom released an Inferno that reacted to the Smog. The result was a large explosion of poison and fire that lingered in the air around the Ultra Guardians, leaving them burned or poisoned. It didn't matter which. Archer was just enjoying his dominance in this battle and stared at the purple cloud of gas that was far away from him. "Checkmate. Your Pokémon will fall to burn or poison in a matter of seconds, if they somehow managed to survive all that injury." The result seemed clear…but for some reason, the poison gas was starting to…dissipate? "Hm?"

"Shay…." It was Shaymin! Shaymin was known for being able to purify air. This was no exception. This was the little Shaymin that could, clearing the smog with its own natural ability. Not only that, but a calming, refreshing breeze washed over the Ultra Guardians, ridding them of any status ailments. That was Aromatheapry. Shaymin may not have been much of a fighter, but it had to do something!

"Tch…" Archer sucked his teeth in annoyance. Delaying the inevitable were they?

"We're…not done yet!" Mallow exclaimed. Shaymin really did save their skin. While they did suffer heavy damage, the status ailments weren't going to finish them off. They had a little bit of fight left…

"You won't give up? You simply don't understand your position." Archer shook his head. "Rainbow Rocket will expand Giovanni's influence across multiple worlds. There won't be a single world that isn't ruled by him! As second in command, it is my duty to ensure any and all nuisances that dare stand up to him are erased!"

"And I won't let you do that!" Mallow and Tsareena were standing in front of everyone as they recovered. She wasn't as strong as they were, but she had to make up for her shortcomings before. "This world is ours and we're not letting anyone take it! Moon is our friend and you're not taking hers either! I refuse to lose anyone or anything else that I care about! Together, we'll stop you!"

"Mallow…" Lana mumbled quietly at her friend's resolve.

"Tsareena! Magical Leaf!" Tsareena started to run forward, firing off Magical Leaf after Magical Leaf at Houndoom.

"Fire Blast." Archer was growing bored of this battle now. Houndoom released a continuous Fire Blast to overpower the Magical Leaf. Tsareena's only saving grace was the number of leaves acted as a shield. The burned leaves started to grow in number and soon enough, burnt foliage served as the perfect cover to attack.

"Now…!" Mallow yelled. Tsareena leapt into the air…and this time, Houndoom was rising up to meet it.

"Again with this trick!? You're far too predictable!" Archer scoffed.

And that's when Mallow smirked. "So are you! Shaymin!"

"What!?" Archer looked down and his eyes widened. The cover of Magical Leaf was never for Tsareena…it was for Shaymin to get close and now it was directly under Houndoom's location! "You…!?"

"SEED FLARE!" Mallow shouted to the heavens while raising her hand up. Shaymin responded to her will and its body started to shine brightly. The mythical pokemon let out a cry of its own as numerous seeds exploded upwards from its body, catching Houndoom in the air and sending it into the sky against its will. "Stomp!" As Houndoom came up, Tsareena lifted her leg up and slammed it down on Houndoom's skull, knocking it down to the ground.

"GRRR!" Houndoom snarled as it hit the ground. That hurt.

While it was down, Kiawe's weakened Marowak had to move. "Bonemerang!" Marowak used all its might to hurl its bone towards Houndoom.

Houndoom and Archer scoffed at this attempt and opened its mouth, catching the bone easily. "Did you think that'd work!?"

"Now you can't use Fire Blast or Inferno!" Kiawe grinned as that went exactly as he wanted. "Iron Head!" Before Archer could utter his shock, Marowak slammed its rock hard head into Houndoom's face, causing it to stagger around. It eventually came to a halt against its will, as Sandy used its tiny body to trip it up, letting it fall onto its side.

"What!? Houndoom, get up!" Archer yelled.

"String Shot!" Vikavolt flew around at high speeds; firing off webbing that wrapped around Houndoom and kept it bound to the ground. "Now!" Togedemaru jumped into Vikavolt's jaws as it charged up a Zap Cannon. "Zap Cannon! Zing Zap!" The Zap Cannon in this case was Togedmaru, flying towards the bound Houndoom.

Houndoom's natural body temperature allowed it to melt the String Shot before long. "Fire Blast!" Houndoom dropped the bone in its mouth and released another Fire Blast to combat the Zap Cannon. Because Togedemaru was in the middle of it all, its momentum allowed it to push through a bit, safeguarded from the fire due to be wrapped in electricity. Eventually an explosion took place that forced Houndoom back, but it wasn't getting even a second of reprieve.

"Aqua Jet!" Primarina's body was surrounded in a fierce veil of water. It was in Torrent range, increasing the potency of all water based attacks. So it was slamming into Houndoom consistently from various angles, not giving it one second to breathe.

"Catch it with Crunch!" The moment Houndoom opened its mouth, Togemaru jumped forward. "Huh!?"

"Spiky Shield!" Togemaru gave Houndoom a smug grin before turning its back to Houndoom, causing its mouth to be occupied as it was hit with the Protect variant. Not only was Togedemaru immune to all damage, but the spikes on its back made sure that it couldn't spit it out so easily. "And Zing Zap!" Perfect chance! Now stuck in its mouth, Togedemaru released a potent blast of lightning inside of Houndoom that paralyzed it. This static shock rendered the hound stuck for a moment, allowing another follow up!

"Surf!" Primarina created another gigantic tidal wave to send at Houndoom. While it was much bigger than the last, the difference now was that Tsareena was riding Primarina's back. Houndoom had no way of protecting itself this time and was swept up in the powerful surf. "Finish it, Mallow!"

"Right!" Mallow nodded and threw her arm forward. "TROP KICK!" As Houndoom was swept away by the Surf, Tsareena lunged forward and reared her leg back. With all her might, she slammed her leg into Houndoom's gut, pushing one last time to firmly kick the Mega Pokémon into the nearest wall and even through it!

Houndoom let out a yelp of pain as it flew through the wall. It tried to crawl out but it soon just…fell over, swirls in its eyes. It collapsed and reverted back to normal, defeated. "W-WHAT!?" Archer's eyes widened as his Houndoom was bested. "This can't be…defeated by these children!? This can't be right…!" Archer returned Houndoom and stared at the Ultra Guardians. Luckily for him…even though he lost, all of their Pokémon hit their limit and soon collapsed as well.

"Are you all right!?" The group all swarmed their injured Pokémon. Giving them first aid came first before anything else.

"I will not forget this…" Archer grit his teeth. He was going to be able to make a clean getaway…

.

.

Ash, Moon, Lillie, and Gladion were all grouped up as they made their way to the heart of the Aether Foundation. Naturally they were met with some resistance as Ariana and a random grunt stood in their way. "Now where do you naughty kids think you're going?"

"You know where." Gladion wasn't in the mood for games. "Get out of our way!"

"Or what? You'll fight us?" The redheaded woman scoffed while tossing a Pokeball into the air. "We've made sure to lock the doors up ahead. There's no way you'll be getting past us away." The Pokeball she released called forth her Arbok, while the grunt beside her called out a Barbaracle.

"They're really trying to slow us down…" Moon mumbled.

"Go on, we can handle this." Ash said while standing next to Gladion. "Incineroar, you're up!"

"Umbreon!" Gladion shouted. Incineroar and Umbreon stood side by side, ready to take on this Rocket Admin and her cohort.

"Thanks you two!" Lillie nodded to Moon and the sprinted past Ariana and her Grunt partner.

"Where do you think…" Ariana was about to sick her Arbok on the two girls, but a Dark Pulse from Umbreon caught her attention real quick.

"Your battle is with us!" Gladion scoffed. "If you think I'll let you harm my family any more than you already have, then you're mistaken."

"That's right. Hope you're ready to fight us instead!" Ash said. Pikachu was ready to jump in if necessary, but for now, Incineroar's burning spirit was enough to handle this situation.

Ariana sucked her teeth. Kids always thought they were so high and mighty… "Fine then…I'll gladly crush the two of you and move on to the real target. I hope you're prepared to face the might of a Rocket Admin."

.

.

Moon and Lillie weren't going to get too far. While they were getting closer to where they needed to be, their progress was stopped cold by a familiar face. They both came to a halt as a Drapion rounded the corner. "Eep…!" Lillie hid behind Moon from being startled. "Is that…?!"

"…They never did give it to Rui or Lovrina, did they…?" Moon said with a sweat drop.

The Shadow Drapion from before was kept under safe keeping in the Pokémon preserve. But it broke free when Rainbow Rocket attacked and went on a rampage. It recognized the two girls from before and as soon as it saw them…it roared and ran right towards them…

.

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Next Time: Truth and Lies.


End file.
